Welcome to Smallville
by snarkycole
Summary: Season 1, slight AU: A new girl moves to Smallville, Kansas and Clark discovers he is not the only person on earth who isn't "normal." Yay, finally an update. Hug chapter is here!
1. Prologue: In the Journal of the New Girl

**Title:** Welcome to Smallville

**Characters:** Original Character (Nicola Lively), and in future chapters, all Season One characters.

**Rating:** PG-13 (or, T)

**Summary:** A new girl moves to Smallville, Kansas and Clark discovers he is not the only person on earth who isn't "normal."

**Disclaimer:** I do not, have never, and will never own the TV shows Smallville or Roswell, nor the book series Roswell High. I'm just using their likeness for my own entertainment which will acquire me no financial benefits.

**Author's Notes:** I started writing this fanfic in November of 2001 when I was a junior in high school and originally it began as a very lame Roswell fanfic before transforming into a sort-of crossover with Smallville. I've had writer's block on this story since January of 2005. My friend started reading it when she was bored at her job as a receptionist, so I'm trying to at the very least finish the newest chapter for her. I thought if I went back and re-wrote the awful stuff I produced back then it would inspire me to finish my story. **Some important notes before you read it if** **you're a new reader**:

**1**. _Timeline_: This takes place during season one. For the most part, each chapter revolves around one episode from the season, starting with episode 1.7 "Craving".

**2**. I realize now that my OC sometimes, as many OCs do, enters Mary Sue territory. But I promise, overall, I try to make her a fallible character. I mean, look how many quotations marks she uses in her journal.

**3**. Future chapters will be long. When I saw "long", I'm talking over 40 pages in a word processor long.

4. Eventually, a Lex/OC pairing will play heavily into the storyline.

* * *

Dear Journal,

Man, I can't believe I'm doing this. In all 17 years of my life, I have never, ever written the words "dear journal". To now be able to is a strange, strange thing. It's weird, most girls my age probably have at least one of those little diaries with the cheap locks that any bratty brother can open in their past, but me, well, even the thought to have one only crossed my mind once. Then again, I'm not like most girls my age and I come from a family that's anything but normal. For godsakes, my parents' names are Romeo and Juliet, what are the chances of that? Well, I suppose they're pretty damn good when you name yourselves that. Okay, so now, if you were an entity that could form a thought, you'd be confused about what the hell I'm talking about. For the sake of my own sanity, I'm going to pretend you are exactly that and explain it to you.

Let me begin by saying my family isn't from around here. When I say "around here" I'm not talking about Kansas or the States, I'm talking bigger than that. My parents are from Alcyone…well, that's the closet translation to English anyway. And where is Alcyone located, you ask? I can't give the exact location, but I can tell you it's over a billion light-years away. That's right, folks, I come from a family of aliens.

Now, before you bring out the straight jacket, I assure you I'm being dead serious. There are others out there on this planet that also come from Alcyone- one is even an author. In the late 90s she wrote young adult book series called Roswell High about a group of teenage aliens who crashed on Earth as children and were raised by humans as humans in Roswell, New Mexico. The books were subsequently turned in a television series that many people watched on the WB. For one reason or another, the author decided to base the aliens' powers and home planet on our own. If you had read the books then you would now know all you need to about my parent's home planet, but since you're just bunch of pieces of paper held together by a hard cover, I'll explain. Alcyone is a planet ruled by something called the collective consciousness. Basically, as it was written in the books, "it's like psychic Internet. All the knowledge, all the life experience, all the emotions of all our people are there in the consciousness. When a young person from our planet reaches maturity, he or she is able to make a connection to the consciousness for the first time. This right of passage is called the akino." When you go through your akino, you experience bursts of heightened sensation and fatigue, which signals it's time for the connection.

Everyone on our planet is told that if you don't make the connection, then you'll die, but that's just some bullshit propaganda the consciousness wants you to believe to scare you. They just want you to connect to it so they can use and control you. The Kindred is a group that opposes the consciousness and believes it's evil. People in the Kindred don't want to lose their identity. Besides having to connect to the consciousness, another belief held by the ruling authority is that you can only have one child. Many people join the Kindred because they want to have more than one child.

So, now that I've explained the history of my planet, let me talk about the history of my family and how we ended up living in the United States. My parent's story is a familiar one, one of two young people from different worlds who meet, fall in love, and are unsuccessfully kept apart by their families. My mother's family belonged to a long line of those who belong to the consciousness. My father's family had been apart of the Kindred for generations. A chance meeting brought them together, but once their parents found out they were seeing each other they pulled out all the stops to keep them separated. Fortunately for me, my parents found ways to get together despite their families wishes and eventually produced a child together. Instead of bringing the families together, this just really pissed off both sides, and everyone did everything their power to keep my parents apart. At the same time, my mother had begun to read a book of Shakespeare plays which my father had given to her, and guess which one she grew an affinity towards? That's right, Romeo & Juliet. The similarities were uncanny to her, but the ending was extremely unappealing. Being together just in death was not an option, so they decided to run away together and get as far away from the consciousness and the Kindred as they could.

My father had a friend who was part of a research team that was traveling to Earth to do some more studies, and he helped sneak them onto the ship with my pod in tow. The destination was the United States. My father knew that when they arrived to the U.S. they would have to blend in, so he brought with him everything he had on country and planet- the customs, the history, the language, etc. On the flight over my parents learned everything they could on the country and gave themselves new names- Romeo and Juliet. Too bad Pops didn't realize that in the 20th Century, no one really names their son Romeo anymore.

Now, my name they did a little better on, but not by much. My full name is Nicola Cordelia Lively. It's not overtly unusual, but my first and middle name weren't exactly commonplace growing up, which isn't great for a girl who belongs to a family that wants to blend in and not stand out. One of the worst things about my name growing up is trying to figure out how to explain why my parents decided to name me as they did. Eventually, I learned that to say that the name was passed down from my father's Italian side of the family, because I knew I sure as hell couldn't tell anyone the actual story. My parents arrived on Earth on October 13th, 1984, landing in Savanna, Georgia. The ship they had traveled in landed on the farm of an elderly couple, Nicole and Harold Johnson. Harold had an affinity for astrology and had happened to be stargazing in his telescope that night, allowing him to witness the ship touchdown on earth to unceremoniously drop off my stowaway parents and my incubation pod.

As my pod hatched, so to speak, and they pulled my newborn human form out, Harold, shotgun in hand, arrived on the scene. Expecting to find little green aliens itching to enslave the human race and take over the world, Harold instead found a couple who looked ever bit as human as him and their newborn baby. Harold reevaluated his initial idea of capturing the probably hostile aliens to turn them over to the government and alternatively decided to bring them back to the house to meet his wife.

Nicole Johnson did not believe her husband had truly discovered real aliens from outer space, but rather that Harold and this couple were confused, rationalizing that this family was just unfortunate illegal aliens from another country trying to find amnesty in the United States and things were being lost in translation. The always-empathetic Nicole Johnson went along with her husband's hospitality of complete strangers, as she did not want to turn away a young couple and their newborn daughter who had nowhere else to go at the moment. Over a late-night dinner my parents explained their "situation" to Harold and Nicole, and the Johnsons decided to allow my parents to stay at their farm until they were able to get a hold of a contact of my father's friend who specialized in helping runaway Alcyonians create a new life for themselves in the United States.

Okay, so after that long-ass origins story, you're wondering where the hell my name falls into the tale. Well, that night at dinner my parents were introduced to the delicious, yet altogether unhealthy beverage known as Coca-Cola, and they instantly loved the drink. My father especially loved how the word "cola" rolled off the tongue. When questioned by Nicole of what their newborn baby's name was going to be, he realized the one thing they hadn't thought about during their journey to Earth was possible names for their child. He and my mother were grateful to Nicole and Harold for the instant hospitality, so my father decided that in honor of this couple his daughter would be named after Nicole. But as he took a sip of that cola, he realized that the ending of her name had the same sound as the beginning of the name of their first taste of human sustenance, so he decided to merge the two to form my name. I know, completely ridiculous, right? Yet, sadly, it is a true story.

Fortunately, while also as uncommon as my first name, my middle one I am actually able to explain easily and truthfully. As I mentioned before, my parents had read some of Shakespeare's plays before coming to Earth. One play he recalled as my parents and the Johnsons were trying to think of possible middle names was King Lear, because it too deals with issue of daughters. Cordelia was the good, loyal daughter, and my father thought the name would reflect that ideal qualities he would wish for a daughter. Granted, she died at the end of the play, but as far as naming me after Shakespearean heroines who faced tragic endings, it could have been worse, I mean, he could have named me Ophelia or Desdemona. Anyway…so there you have it; that's how I got my name.

Now, if you were an actual person and not a journal, at one point after learning I was an alien from outer space, you would probably be wondering what the hell my family and I look like. I know I briefly mentioned it in the tale of how my family met the Johnsons, but let me give you better details. You know the whole green men with big ole eyes that you see in the really cheesy sci-fi movies? Well that my friend is our traveling form. As I hinted at earlier, on Earth we look like your average humans. See, our bodies are highly adaptable. They adjust to whatever environment we are in. Not only do they adapt to the physical environment, they adapt to the social environment. Since humans are the dominant species, we turn into them when we come to Earth instead of whatever animal would be better suited to survive the physical aspect of whatever area we land. On a normal day, I look like your average teenage female. Okay, so I'm a little taller than the average 17-year-old female at 5 foot 8 inches, but other than that there's nothing overtly special about how I look. I have dark brown hair that goes just past my shoulders with bangs that sweep across over my greenish-blue eyes, and an athletic build that I got from years of playing sports. On the ethnicity side, for some reason we naturally adapted to be an unidentifiable appearance of a mix of ethnicities. On any given day, I could be mistaken for being part Asian, or Hispanic, or Greek, or…well, you get the point.

Okay, now to the more exciting stuff: powers. The previously mentioned book revealed most of our powers. When we become human, we are able to utilize a much higher percentage of the brain than normally used. Because of this, we have certain abilities that some people believe can be ascertained if you only had access to certain parts of your brain. For instance, we can read minds, shapeshift, teleport, heal, connect with other people to see inside their head, go into people's dreams, produce holographic memories, and manipulate molecules. We also can see auras and read the colors to determine a person's temperament. There are a couple of abilities I have obtained which my parents and other people on Earth from Alcyone have not. One of those powers is telekinesis, which comes in handy when it's time for spring-cleaning. My parents are not sure why this happened, or why they can't ascertain the abilities, but my guess is something mutated when I was in my pod some time between riding in the spaceship and hatching on Earth, allowing me to access parts of the brain that others cannot. The only thing that was exaggerated in the books is our ability to run on one to two hours sleep. Trust me, if I don't get at least four to five hours a night, I get pretty cranky.

Well, let me get back to my family. For the first nine years my life my family and I moved around a lot, mainly to keep safe because my parents were afraid someone would find out about us, and the government would capture us. During this time my parents taught me how to control my powers, and told me to never use them in public.

One day my world came tumbling down, and it had nothing to do with the government capturing my family for experiments. What happened wasn't alien related. A little over six years ago, April 15, 1995 to be more exact, my father was killed in a car crash when we were staying in Metropolis. My mom found a job as a receptionist at a law firm, and she, my little sister Lindsay, and I made Metropolis our permanent home. I turned 11 a few months after he died. Poor Lindsay had turned four just a couple of months earlier. The only clear memories she has of him are through old pictures and holographic memories we have shown her.

Less than a year after my Dad died my mom met a Mr. Brad Tompkins. Mr. Tompkins was my 5th grade teacher. Fortunately for me, they didn't start dating till the summer following my 5th grade year. They fell in love, dated for about 6 months before they married in early '97. So much for soulmates, huh? I still can't believe she told him the secret, but then again, you shouldn't keep your origins a secret to the man you're probably going to have to explain to why their children can do "special" things. Anyways, 7 months later my half brother Joey was born, which means that Brad and my mom were obviously okay with premarital sex but that's something I don't like to think about, so let's move on.

So now it's November 25th, 2001, and I am in a car that is nearing Smallville, Kansas. Smallville? They might as well call it Nowheresville. Why am I writing to you now journal, and not before after all those other "life-changing experiences"? Well, I was always afraid that if I wrote in a journal, someone might "accidentally" read it, then learn my family's secret and expose us. But now that we're moving to the middle of nowhere, I feel I don't have to worry.

The reason we're moving to Smallville is Brad's dad died a few weeks ago and Brad inherited the small ranch his dad owned. Instead of doing the smart thing and selling the land so we could stay in Metropolis, Brad and my mom thought it would be better, and safer, if we moved out here back to his hometown.

Personally, I really wish I had just been around to heal Brad's dad before he died so we wouldn't have to move to this Podunk town. I wonder what to they do to entertain themselves here. I bet all they do is relish on football games and watch the grass grow for fun. This is going to be the most boring town to live in. Well, at least I have my powers to keep me entertained.

Alright, apparently we're pulling up to the house now, so that's all for now.

Until next time, Journal,

Nicola


	2. Arriving in Smallville

Smallville, Kansas

Sunday, November 25, 2001

1:35 PM

Brad Tompkins turned off the engine of his green Nissan Exterra and pulled the keys from the ignition.

"Well, here we are," Brad said to his family. "Home sweet home."

"Oh goody," replied Brad's step-daughter, 17 year old junior Nicola Cordelia Lively, sarcastically as she put her journal into her messenger bag before looking out the car widow at her new house.

"Nicola," scolded Juliet Lively-Tompkins, Nicola's mom and Brad's wife.

"Sorry," sighed Nicola.

Everyone in the car opened their doors and climbed out. Nicola slid her messenger bag on and then leaned into the car to unbuckle her three-year old half-brother Joseph's carseat to take him out. Once she had a grip on him, she carried him up the porch stairs to the front door where the rest of her family had already gone through. The house wasn't empty since a few things of Brad's parents had been kept, while other things, such as some furniture, clothing, etc., had been sold. The older things had been sold to the antique store in town before the lady who owned it was murdered. None of the Lively-Tompkins family's things were in the house since the movers hadn't arrived yet.

Nicola set Joey down on the floor so he could stand on his own. She had only seen the house once before and that was at Brad's father's funeral, which she didn't spend too much time at; she had managed to slip away unnoticed and orb back to her home in Metropolis. So now here she was, standing in her new home.

"I'm going to check out the house," Nicola informed her mom.

"All right, but be back in a half-hour so we can get situated," replied Juliet. "And don't go orbing back to Metropolis."

"I wasn't going to," Nicola replied, sighing heavily once again.

Okay, so maybe the thought had crossed my mind.

She left her family, tossed her bag on the front entrance's floor, and then walked through the house. The house was pretty large. It had a living room, dining room, good-sized kitchen, a small laundry room, and a bathroom on the main floor. She walked up the staircase that led to the second floor to check out the bedroom situation. There was a bathroom, two small bedrooms, and one large master bedroom that had it's own bathroom.

"Only three bedrooms?" Nicola said to herself aloud. As much as she loved her sister Lindsay, she didn't want to share a room with a ten-year-old, which was what she had the feeling will be the possible living arrangement.

Nicola ran down the stairs to outside on the porch where her mom, Brad, Lindsay, and Joey were sitting.

"Mom, are you aware there are only three bedrooms upstairs?"

"Yes, Nicola, I'm aware," replied Juliet.

"Don't you think we need four bedrooms?"

"We already figured that out Nicola," said Brad.

"And?"

"We are going to fix the basement up for your room," said Juliet.

"The basement?"

"Yes, that's what I said."

"I can handle that."

Nicola walked back into the house and looked for the basement stairs. Nicola found that the door to the basement was located in the kitchen. She opened the basement door and saw a light switch on the wall. She flipped the light on and went down the stairs. When she reached the last step, she realized that the basement was a wine cellar.

"Oh great, a wine cellar," Nicola said to herself. "They put me in a freakin' wine cellar!"

She paused and took time to recollect herself before she got mad. She surveyed the room for a moment and tried to find a silver lining, which was found in a door that led to outside.

"Well, at least it has a back door."

She looked at the cellar and realized a lot of changes were in order, starting with the windows; all of them were blacked out

Good thing I'm an alien; it makes remodeling so much easier.

Nicola walked to one of the windows and put her hand on the glass. She closed her eyes and concentrated on the molecules of the paint on the window. She used her mind to make the paint dissolve. She opened her eyes to find the afternoon sun shining on her face. She smiled as she did the same to the other 3 small windows.

"Now for the walls."

The walls were wooden panels that weren't painted. She touched the wall, and slowly all four walls and the ceiling changed from brown to a dark blue. There were three long shelves for the wine and some of the compartments on the shelves still had wine bottles in them.

"Maybe I should asked Brad what to do before I do anything with the shelves and wine."

Nicola was about to run up the stairs, through the house, and then outside to the front porch, but then she remembered that the room had a door that lead outside. She unlocked the door and once on the other side she found she had to bound a small flight of stairs to get to ground level. The door lead to one of the sides of the house.

When Nicola made it to the front of the house, she discovered that the moving van had finally arrived. The urge to hurry the moving along overcame her, so walked up the ramp into the truck so she could help the moving process. She was about to grab one of her large boxes when a voice interrupted her from behind.

"Hey there, little lady, leave the lifting to us," said a male voice. "You just stand by and look pretty."

Anger surged through every inch of Nicola's body.

What an ass.

She turned around and saw that the voice belonged to the overweight mover who had moved their things into the truck earlier that day. She glared at him, then replied venomously, "I think I can handle it."

She turned back around and grabbed one of the boxes. Initially, the box was slightly heavy, but with the help of her telekinetic powers, she appeared to be carrying the box effortlessly. The moving guy gawked in astonishment as Nicola walked down the ramp past him since he was the one who put the box in the truck in the first place and it had been pretty heavy.

She carried the box into the house and put it into the living room where the movers had put the other things.

"Mom!" she yelled.

"In the kitchen!" Nicola heard her mom yell back.

Nicola walked into the kitchen to find her mom unpacking some of the kitchen supplies.

"Mom, was there any miniscule task you wanted me to perform?"

"Why don't you help the movers bring in our stuff?"

"Sure, but won't they get mad since they get paid by the hour, and if I help it will be quicker, thus, they would be paid less?"

"Yes, but the quicker they are done, the happier I will be."

"Alright, but I must warn you, they weren't very civilized, so, on the off chance their overtly lewd or piggish, I may be forced to cause bodily harm."

"Understood, however, I doubt it will come to that."

"Well, don't say I didn't warn you first."

Nicola left her mother and reluctantly made her way back to moving van. As much as she wanted to make the moving process go faster, she didn't want to work side-by-side with the pigs that were their movers. She went back up the ramp to find the movers sitting on her family's couch.

"Don't you two have work to do?"

"We're taking a break," replied the overweight mover who called Nicola "little lady."

"Well, the break's over, get back to work."

"Hey babe, you ain't the one paying us, so shut your trap and leave," said the other mover who was tall and lanky.

With that comment, Nicola had enough. She walked to the couch and started to lift one side of it, with the help of her powers of course. The two men rolled off the couch and fell to the ground.

"Now, as I was saying, get your asses back to work," Nicola hissed to the movers.

"Yes, ma'am," said the lanky man.

The large man glared at Nicola, but then slowly went back to work. Nicola grabbed another box and carried it to the house. An hour and half later the movers were done and gone, with the help Nicola. Once they dissipated, Nicola searched the house for Brad. She found him up in the attic, making room for things.

"Hey Brad, I was wondering what was going to happen to the shelves and the wine in my room," said Nicola.

"How about we put them on the back porch for now?" he suggested.

"Sounds good."

With that, Nicola orbed out of the attic to her room in the basement. Brad flinched as Nicola dematerialized before his eyes. Sure, he had seen Nicola do it a bunch of times when she was mad at him or her mom, in fact he had seen Nicola, his wife, and Lindsay do many alien things, however that didn't mean he was used to it.

Seconds later, Nicola found herself in the basement. She grabbed one of the shelves and pulled apart the molecules of herself and the shelf then orbed herself and the shelf to the back porch. She looked around to make sure no one had seen her. Satisfied that the coast was clear, she orbed back to the basement and did the same thing with the other two shelves.

After she was done taking the shelves out to the back, Nicola did one last orb to the basement. She found that without the shelves the room was a pretty decent size; not the size of the rooms on the main floor together, but big enough. She took another look at one wall that a shelf had been covering and noticed that something about part of the wall was off. She walked to the wall and put her hand on it. She pushed the wall, and part of it swung in.

"What the hell?" Nicola said to herself. "Why does Brad's family have a secret door?"

She stepped through the doorway into a narrow hallway full of darkness. If she had been a normal human this would provoke a difficulty of seeing ability, but luckily she wasn't a normal human and could see better in the dark. She could see a door about two feet in front of her. She walked to the door and opened it.

As stepped through the doorway and found herself in a small room. She turned to the wall near the door she had just came through and saw a light switch. She flipped both the switches up and both regular light and safelights turned on to reveal that Nicola had found a darkroom. She turned off the safelights, then orbed quickly out of the darkroom up to the attic. Right as she reformed behind Brad, she called his name, causing him to nearly jump out of his skin.

"God, don't do that," said Brad. "How many times have your mother and I told you not to orb behind someone."

"Sorry, it's just that I found something in the basement."

"What?"

"I'll show you."

Nicola grabbed Brad's arm and brought them to the basement.

"Next time give me a little warning before you pull my molecules apart," he chided her when they re-formed.

"Sorry."

"Now, what did you want to show me?"

"That," said Nicola as she pointed to something behind him.

Brad turned around to see the door that Nicola had found earlier.

"Oh, that's just the old storage room," said Brad.

"Do you know what it is now?"

"An empty old storage room?"

"Wrong. Go take a look."

Brad warily walked to through the two doorways that lead to the back room.

"A darkroom? I guess my dad made this after I left." Brad noticed a filing cabinet that was against one of the walls. "Did you look in there?"

"No, I came to get you as soon as I found it."

Brad walked to the filing cabinet closely followed by Nicola, and read the label above the handle of the top cabinet drawer. October 25, 1989. He opened the drawer to reveal several black and white photos sitting inside of it. Brad and Nicola grabbed some photos and looked at them. They each stood underneath one of the two regular lights then looked at the pictures. All of them were pictures of meteors falling from the sky.

"These are pictures of that meteor shower on October 25th, 1989."

I kinda figured that one out, Nicola thought to herself, rolling her eyes.

She went through the pictures and saw that Brad's father had used the enlarger to get closer and closer on the picture. Skimming through them, something caught her eye.

"Oh my God," gasped Nicola. "There's a spacecraft in the pictures."

"What?"

"Look."

Nicola pointed to the picture in her hand. On it was the image of meteors falling to the ground, but behind one of the meteors was a small spacecraft.

"It can't be a UFO."

"Hello, you're married to someone who arrived on this planet in a spacecraft."

"I know, it's just that, no one mentioned a spacecraft."

"So?"

"Think back to the Roswell incident in the 1940s. The tabloids talked about the spacecraft like crazy."

"So you're thinking that if someone had seen it besides your father, then it would have been as big as the Roswell incident?"

"Exactly."

"Well, maybe the occurrence of the meteors diverted the attention of the spacecraft falling to earth. Besides it wasn't that big of a craft."

"True."

"Well, I'm going to show this to my mom and see what she thinks about it."

"Alright."

Nicola started walking out of the room when she noticed that Brad wasn't following her.

"You coming?" she asked him.

"I'll be right up."

Nicola left Brad in the darkroom and walked upstairs to the kitchen to find her mom putting away the rest of the kitchen utensils.

"Mom, look what I found."

Juliet turned around to her daughter to see she had a piece of paper in her hand. Nicola handed her mom the photo and her mom looked it over.

"So? It's the picture of some meteors. Big deal."

"Thank you Captain Obvious. Take another look. Notice anything alien?"

Juliet took another look at the photo and just as Nicola and Brad had she saw the small spacecraft.

"Oh my," said Juliet.

"Do you recognize it?"

"No. But honey, there are many planets and species in this galaxy," said Juliet. "Many of which I know nothing about. All I can tell you is this spacecraft looks like a ride for one."

"Alright. Do you know where the feather duster and broom are?"

Juliet gave her daughter a funny look.

"What?" said Nicola defensively. "I noticed the basement was dusty."

"I don't know. Look around the living room with the other stuff," replied Juliet.

"Alright."

Nicola walked out the kitchen to the living room, leaving her mom to wonder about the spacecraft. There were many boxes that cluttered the living room space. She didn't see the broom or a box with cleaning supplies anywhere so she decided to use her alien powers again. She closed her eyes, held out her hand, and imagined the broom.

"Come on broom," Nicola said out loud to herself as she waited for the broom to come.

Seconds later, Nicola felt a handle in her hand. She opened her eyes, and smiled when she saw that it was the broom.

"Now for the feather duster."

Nicola decided not to use the same process to find the feather duster as she had done with the broom. Instead she decided to bring each box to her and see what they had been marked as. She looked at one of the boxes that she couldn't read was labeled as, and used her mind to bring it to her. The box floated to her hands, and she read that the box said "Nicola's Stuff" on it. She decided that she might as well sort through the stuff while she was at it.

Within 15 minutes, Nicola managed to put the boxes into different piles. On one side of the living room she had her, Lindsay's, her mom's, Brad's, and Joey's piles of boxes in different stacks and on the other was some furniture, appliances, electronic devices, and other general boxes. Unfortunately, the last box that Nicola brought to her was the cleaning supply box she was looking for in the first place. She opened it up and found the feather duster and a dustpan inside.

She grabbed the cleaning supplies she needed then walked back down to the basement. Nicola put down the feather duster on the stairs then started sweeping, the human way. Sure, she could have used her telekinetic powers and not have to lift a muscle, but Nicola was taught that sometimes she had to do things the non-power way, especially if she was planing on ever living with humans.

For about 5 minutes, Nicola swept all the dust and dirt on the floor into a pile, then swept it into the dustpan. She opened the door then emptied contents of the dustpan onto the ground. She left the door open and opened all the windows so fresh air could circulate. She propped the broom in one of the corners of the room then placed the dustpan on one of the steps. She grabbed the feather duster and dusted everything that she was able to reach, but since the room had high ceilings to fit the large wine shelves, she had to use her powers to dust the ceiling and the higher part of the walls.

Right as Nicola finished her cleaning, Brad came out of the darkroom with a box.

"What's in the box?" Nicola asked Brad.

"Just all the pictures that were in the cabinet drawers."

"Oh. Brad, I was wondering if it would be okay if I used the darkroom as my own?"

Brad took a breath, then replied, "Sure."

"Thanks."

Nicola smiled to herself as Brad walked up the stairs.

Woo hoo! I have my own darkroom! Maybe this move isn't so bad.

Nicola grabbed the broom, feather duster, and dustpan and ran up the stairs. She took the broom, dustpan, and feather duster in a small closet in the laundry room then walked to the living room where her stuff was piled. She made sure all her stuff was touching each other, then touched two of the boxes. The boxes and Nicola orbed down to the basement.

She grabbed the box that had her bed frame together and assembled it together. She put the frame against the wall that didn't have windows, secret doors, or steps blocking any of it. Next, Nicola walked back upstairs to look for her other furniture. She found her mattress, nightstand, and full-length mirror in the living room and her dresser, bookshelf, and desk on the porch. One at a time, she transported her furniture into her room.

When she was done arranging the furniture, she used her telekinetic powers to put her things away. Sure, she should have done it the human way, but she want to finish quickly so she could eat. A half an hour later, Nicola was done putting her things away. She went upstairs to find her mom, and located her in Joey's room, putting things away.

"Where are the sheets and blankets for the bed?"

"I put them away in the linen closet near the bathroom."

"Thanks."

Nicola walked a couple feet and found herself in front of the linen closet. She opened it up and, sure enough, the sheets, blankets, comforters, and towels were put away nicely on the shelves. She took the necessities, and walked with them down to her room. When she got to the basement, she set the sheets on the ground next to the bed, then started to make it.

When she was done with that, Nicola decided she should take a break to eat. She walked back up to the kitchen and opened the refrigerator to find it empty. She groaned at the empty fridge, then closed the door. She turned away from the fridge and walked around the house to look for Brad or her mom. She walked upstairs to find her mom working on Lindsay's room now.

"Mom, there's nothing to eat," Nicola informed her.

"I know," replied Juliet. "I was going to go into the town to the market in about an hour."

"How about you give me the keys to the car and some money, then I can drive to the market to buy groceries?" suggested Nicola.

"You lost your license; it's illegal to drive without a license."

"I would have gotten it replaced it if we hadn't move so suddenly," Nicola muttered under her breath.

"What was that?" asked Juliet in an irritated tone.

"Mom, this is a small town in Kansas and I am a good driver, you know it. Besides, if a cop pulls me over to question me, I can always use my powers to change my student ID to a valid driver's license."

"It doesn't matter Nicola, you're not going to go."

"Fine, I guess I'll just orb to get some food."

"Fine, you win," sighed Juliet, not wanting her daughter to accidentally orb in front of people. "I need a break anyway. Go ask Brad for the car keys and get some money from my purse."

"Thanks mom," smiled Nicola.

Nicola walked to Juliet and Brad's master bedroom, to find Brad putting away clothing in the closet.

"Hey Brad," said Nicola.

Brad turned around to see Nicola as the doorway.

"Yes?"

"Can I have the keys to the Exterra?"

"Why?" asked Brad suspiciously.

"So I can drive into town to get groceries."

"I don't think so. You don't have a license on you. If a cop were to pull you over without a license that may cause trouble for our family considering some outer-worldly backgrounds," said Brad.

"Oh, come on. I'm a good driver and this is Kansas. Even if I do get pulled over, it won't lead to being captured and having experiments done on me."

"That's not the point. It's still illegal."

"Look Dudley Do-right. I'm sure you drove around town before you were even 15."

Brad didn't answer her.

"See, I thought so."

"It doesn't matter what I've done when I was a teenager, that was different."

"Oh, come on. Please Brad? Mom said it was okay."

"She did?"

"Yes."

"Fine," sighed Brad, tossing her the keys. "But if you scratch it your in major trouble."

Nicola caught the keys.

"If I scratch, I can just use my powers to fix it," grinned Nicola.

"You sound like you've done it before."

"Well, I haven't. I'm going. See you later."

"Bye."

She walked out of the room and back to Lindsay's.

"Oh, mom, I forgot to ask you where your purse is."

"It's in the kitchen," replied Juliet. "Take 50 dollars, and make sure you buy enough groceries to last more than a couple of days."

"All right."

"And don't forget toilet paper."

"I won't."

"And be home by 6:00," yelled Juliet as Nicola hustled out of the room down to the kitchen.

Nicole saw her mom's purse on the counter as soon as she entered the kitchen. She opened the purse and took out the wallet. She grabbed two twenties and a ten out of it, then placed the wallet back in the purse. She left the house, got into the family car, then headed toward town.

15 minutes later, Nicola arrived in town She found a parking spot near the market before she got out of the car. She walked into the market, grabbed a basket, and browsed through the aisles. 30 minutes later, she was finished grocery shopping, and went back to her car. She put the groceries in the back of the Exterra, then started to walk to the driver's door. As she faced the other side of the street, a sign that said, The Beanery caught her eye, and suddenly Nicola was in the mood for some coffee.

She walked across the street and into the Beanery. She got in line behind two other people, and waited till she got to the front. She ordered herself a white chocolate mocha, then took a seat at an empty table. As she waited for her coffee, she noticed a gorgeous guy with brown hair with a bright yellow aura sitting on a couch chair talking to a blonde girl with a warm amber aura.

He's cute. I wonder if the blonde's his girlfriend.

Suddenly, the guy glanced up and looked in Nicola's direction, causing her to quickly glance down at the table. She tapped her fingers on the table, still waiting for her drink, when she heard a voice in front of her.

"Mind if we sit here?" Nicola heard a male voice ask.

Nicola looks up to see the brown haired guy and the blonde standing before her.

"Not a problem, go right ahead," replied Nicola.

The guy introduced himself and the girl as they sat down at the seats across from her. "Hi, I'm Clark Kent and this is Chloe Sullivan."

"Nice to meet ya guys. Nicola Lively."

"So are you new in town?" Clark asked her.

"Yeah, I just moved here today."

"Where from?"

"Metropolis."

"Oh, Chloe's originally from Metropolis, too."

"I can speak for myself Clark," said Chloe.

"Sorry."

"So, Nicola, you have a very interesting name," commented Chloe.

"Yeah, it's Italian," replied Nicola.

"Are you Italian?" asked Chloe.

"No, but like I said, my name is."

"Anyway," interrupted Clark. "How do you like Smallville so far?"

"Well, I haven't been here that long, so I haven't really soaked it in yet, but, from what I've gathered so far, it does appear to be on the boring side, no offense."

"Yeah, this town usually gets that reaction," replied Clark.

"Not surprised. So, what do you do for fun here?" asked Nicola as her white chocolate mocha arrived at the table.

"Well, most teenagers hang out here or go to the school football games," answered Clark.

"Oh, goody," muttered Nicola.

"Not a football fan, I take it?" asked Chloe.

"Oh, I like playing football and watching pro-games, but I tend not to go the high school games."

"You play football?" Clark asked her.

"Yeah, usually with my friends," started Nicola. "I wanted to try-out for the team at Metropolis High, but my mom and step-dad wouldn't let me try-out. They were afraid I would get hurt. It doesn't matter though anymore, since we moved anyway."

"A girl trying out for a man's sport. Now, that would cause a lot of controversy, especially if it was in our little hamlet," said Chloe.

"I bet," replied Nicola. "So Clark, do you play football?"

"Me? No," chuckled Clark. "My parents wouldn't let me either."

"Too bad. You look like you could hold your own on the field."

As soon as it came out of her mouth she kicked herself.

Jeez Nicola. For all you know, Chloe's his girlfriend, and it sounds like you're openly flirting with the guy in front of her. You should try making friends with her, and not appear as though you're hitting on Clark.

"Thanks."

Nicola was about to say something, when she noticed Clark's attention moved to the Beanery's entrance. She turned around to see a pretty girl with long dark hair wearing a pink ensemble walking towards them. The girl smiled in their direction and Nicola turned back to Clark to see him smiling back at her. Nicola glanced at Chloe to see her rolling her eyes.

All right, now from the looks of it, maybe this brunette girl is Clark's girlfriend.

Seconds later, the girl in pink arrived at their table.

"Hi Clark, Chloe," the girl in pink greeted the two in a chipper voice.

"Hi Lana," replied Clark.

"Hey," responded Chloe.

Lana turned to Nicola.

"Hello, I don't believe we've met. Lana Lang."

"Nicola Lively."

"Nice to meet you," smiled Lana. "Are you new in town?"

"Yep. Just arrived a few hours ago."

"So Lana, what are you up to?" asked Clark, interrupting the exchange briefly.

"Oh, I'm here to meet Whitney."

Nicola saw Clark's yellow aura dim a little and could tell he was a little disappointed.

"So, are you supposed to meet her here soon?" asked Nicola, assuming Whitney was a girl.

Nicola noticed that Chloe and Clark were trying not to laugh at her question, puzzling her.

"Actually, Whitney is a guy," replied Lana. "My boyfriend to be more exact."

"Oh, sorry," apologized Nicola, trying to contain her laughter also.

"That's alright."

It's all clear now. Chloe possibly likes Clark, who obviously likes Lana, who has a boyfriend…who has a girl's name.

The bell to the Beanery's entrance and Lana's attention turned to it, but alas, it was two girls who entered the café.

"So, Lana, do you want to join us while you wait for Whitney?"

"Sure," smiled Lana.

Nicola scooted to the seat that was across from Clark, while Lana sat in the seat that Nicola had been sitting in.

"So did your family move here for the plant?" asked Lana.

"No. My step-dad's father died and he inherited the ranch."

"Oh, I'm sorry," said Lana.

"Who's your step-father?" asked Clark.

"Brad Tompkins."

"Brad Tompkins? Was his father Gene Tompkins?"

"Yeah."

"Oh, the ranch is near my family's farm… I went to the funeral with my parents. I don't remember seeing you there."

"Well, I spent most of my time hiding in one of the bedrooms," lied Nicola.

"Oh."

"So, do you guys go to Smallville High?"

"Yeah," Chloe answered for the trio. "Is that where you're going to go for school?"

"Yep. What grade are you guys in?"

"We're freshmen," replied Clark.

"Freshmen?" repeated Nicola in surprise. "You guys look older than freshman."

"Thanks," smiled Lana, happy for the compliment. "Are you a senior?"

"Nope, junior."

"So, does high school get any better as you get older?" asks Chloe.

"Only if you stay at one high school."

Chloe could hear the bitterness in Nicola's voice and understood what she must feel like since she too had moved once.

Nicola drank the last of her coffee and glanced at her watch.

"Oh no," said Nicola. "It's 6:18. I was supposed to be home at 6."

Nicola got up and grabbed her keys off the table.

"Sorry guys, I have to go. It was nice meeting you all. Maybe I'll see you at school tomorrow," Nicola told Clark, Chloe, and Lana.

"Bye," said Clark, Chloe, and Lana, one after another.

Nicola hustled out the doors and bolted towards her car, but ran into someone in the process, dropping her keys.

"Oh, I am so sorry," said Nicola, picking up her keys from the ground.

"That's alright," said a male voice. "Just be more careful next time."

Nicola looked up at the person she had run into her and discovered the voice belong to a guy who was in his early twenties and was very good-looking, despite the fact, one might say, that he was bald.

This guy looks familiar. Where have I seen him before?

She shook the thought off momentarily and with a slight smile on her face replied, "I'll try."

She moved around the guy, and as she stepped further away, the identity of him instantly came to her. He was the infamous Lex Luthor. Not letting the initial shock of running into an attractive, multi-million-possible billion-aire phase her, she continued the task at hand, and ran across the street to her car, making sure not to run into anymore people. Once inside her vehicle, she started the car to head towards her new home. Nicola arrived to her house in 6 minutes faster than her 15-minute car ride into town since she had pushed the speed limit a little. She grabbed two of the five bags of groceries from the back of the car, and ran into the house.

"I am so sorry I'm late!" said Nicola as she entered the house.

"That's alright," said Juliet as she walked to Nicola from the dining room. "We were just finishing putting together the dining room together."

"Oh," replied Nicola.

"Are there more groceries?"

"Yeah, three bags."

"Okay, I'll go get two them."

"Alright," said a distracted Nicola. She checked out her mom's peach aura to see any signs of hidden anger, but there was none.

That's weird. Being the overprotective mom she is, she usually flips if I come home late. I guess she's probably just too busy with the move to care.

Nicola took the bags to the kitchen and put the groceries away. Juliet came into the kitchen with two more bags of groceries and as she put those away, Nicola went back to the car to get the last bag. She walked back into the kitchen and put away the last of the groceries. She took two boxes of frozen pepperoni pizza she had bought and a can of pineapples. She preheated the oven, then threw the pineapples onto one of the pizzas. When the oven was ready, she placed the pizzas into the oven, then waited for them to bake. 20 minutes later, the pizzas were done and Nicola took out them out of the oven.

"Pizza's ready!" called Nicola.

She grabbed a knife and sliced each pizza into 4 slices. She took two slices of the pineapple pizza and placed them onto a plate. Nicola got some Coke out of the fridge and placed it on the counter before reaching into one of the cabinets for a glass. She poured the Coke into the glass then grabbed some Tabasco sauce from another cabinet. She shook a lot of the Tabasco sauce out of the container into the Coke and mixed it with her pointer finger.

"It told you not to use your finger to mix your drinks," scolded Juliet as she walked into the kitchen.

"Sorry," said Nicola.

She wiped her wet finger onto a towel, then dabbed some Tabasco sauce on her pizza. She carried her pizza to the kitchen table and sat down in on of the seats. As she started to eat her pizza, the rest of her family joined her at the table.

"Thanks for making dinner," said Juliet.

"No problem," replied Nicola. "So did anything happen while I was gone?"

"No. We just finished putting together all the rooms. How about you? Anything interesting happen in town?"

"Well, I went to the Beanery and made some friends, I think."

"Really, what are there names?"

"Umm…Lana Lang, Chloe Sullivan, and Clark Kent."

"Oh you met Martha and Jonathan's son? He is such a nice boy," said Juliet. "We met him at the funeral."

"I also ran into Lex Luthor, literally," Nicola informed them.

"Really? Lex Luthor of Luthor Corps?"

"Yep, the very same."

"Interesting."

"So do you guys know what time the bus comes tomorrow morning?" asked Nicola, changing the subject.

"7:40," replied Brad. "And it leaves at 7:40 and thirty seconds, with or without you."

"It doesn't matter, if I miss it I can just orb to school," muttered Nicola.

"No orbing," said Juliet. "You better make it to the bus on time."

"Yeah, yeah."

"I'm serious Nicola, no orbing."

"I thought the whole point of moving here was because it was safer than Metropolis."

"It is, but you still shouldn't use your powers so much."

"Fine," sighed Nicola. "I'll keep my power-usage to a minimum."

"Thank you."

Nicola finished up her pizza and Coke, then excused herself from the table. She went upstairs to take a shower. After her shower, Nicola went down to her room to put on some pajamas. She looked through her clothes to pick an outfit to wear for school tomorrow. In a matter of minutes she decided to wear her favorite pair of Levi jeans and a light blue, low cut, long sleeved shirt. She placed her clothes on her desk then glanced at the radio/alarm clock that was on her nightstand.

"Only 8:32? I still have like 5 hours till I need my 2 hours of sleep," Nicola complained to herself. Then it hit her. "Duh. I'm an alien. I have many ways to entertain myself."

She sat on her bed and looked straight ahead. She concentrated until she felt the air in front of her vibrate and the Beanery appeared in before her. The image she had created was from earlier today. She saw herself and the backs of Chloe and Clark in the image sitting at the table. She changed the view so that she now saw her back and the faces of Clark and Chloe.

"I could stare at Clark for hours," sighed Nicola.

Oh get over it. He's too hung up on that Lana girl to notice you. And he's a FRESHMAN!!! That mean's you're at least two years older than him. But, I guess, if I were to date anyone younger than me, Clark would be an excellent choice.

She fast-forwarded the scene until she got to the part where she was outside of the Beanery on the streets of Smallville. She paused the recap at the part when she looked up at Lex to take a good look at him. She rotated the image so she could see Lex in his entirety.

Damn, he's sexy. Meeting two good-looking guys in less than 30-minutes of each other in a town like this. Who would have thought?

Something about these two guys pulled her to them. They both seemed really intriguing. Lex just this aura of mystique about him and Nicola had a feeling that there was more to Clark than the initial farm-boy image he radiated off. She couldn't wait for more interactions with these two young men.

Instantly the image before her disappeared and no longer was she on the streets of Smallville with Lex. Instead she was back in the basement again.

Maybe I should do something non-alien.

Nicola looked out on of her windows and saw that it was clear out. She put on some socks and shoes, grabbed a sweatshirt from her dresser and extra comforter she had, then orbed out of her room to one of the fields on her family's ranch. She spread the comforter out on the ground and laid on top of it. She wrapped the comforter around herself then looked up at the stars.

The last time she had seen this many stars was when her dad took her camping the summer before he died. Metropolis had too many bright city lights that blocked the view of the vast number of stars that filled the sky. She laid there on the ground for a half an hour taking the scenery above her in. When she started to get a little colder, she decided to orb back to her room. She looked at her clock again. This time it said it was 9:12.

It's too early to dreamwalk. The only people whose dream would be interesting to see won't be asleep for at least an hour. If only my Internet was up, but mom said that won't be connected till the end of the week. Maybe I should just read.

Nicola walked to her bookshelf and skimmed through her selection of books. She had about 50 books that were placed alphabetically by author on the shelves. She had already read almost all the books at least once. She suddenly remembered she had gotten one for her birthday last month, and had never gotten around to reading. She went through the books again and found what she was looking for. A Walk to Remember. She laid down on her bed and started to read.

Almost 3 hours had passed and Nicola was done with the book. She tossed the book onto her desk, then looked at the clock. 11:48. I'm sure someone is sleeping.

Nicola laid back down on her bed and shut her eyes. She took slow, deep breaths and soon was on the dream plane. On the dream plane were thousands of sparkling orbs. Each orb had a sound bouncing off of it. Each orb belongs to a dreamer in Smallville and each had its own musical note. I wonder which orb belongs to who?

Nicola stretched out her arms and called to the orb by starting to hum. An orb came to her and spun in her hands. The orb had a low hum coming off of it. Nicola hummed louder, making the orb expand. When the orb was big enough, she stepped through it.

She looked around to find herself at a dance that took place at a school gym. The gym was packed with people in their formal attire. Nicola looked down at her clothes and realized her purple pajamas clashed with the formalwear. She quickly morphed her purple pajamas into a simple, light purple dress with spaghetti-straps. She glanced over everyone in the room to see if she could figure out whose dream this was.

On one side of the room she recognized Lana and on the other she saw Clark and Chloe talking with an African-American boy around their age. Nicola watched as Clark turned around in the direction of Lana and he started to walk towards her. As Clark took each step to Lana, the people on the dance floor moved to the side, out of his way.

Clark reached Lana.

"May I have this dance?" Nicola heard Clark ask Lana.

"Of course," Lana replied with a large smile on her face.

I think I know whose dream this is.

Clark held out his hand, which Lana gladly took, and he led her to the middle of the dance floor. Nicola heard a slow song start and the lights dimmed. The crystal ball on the ceiling reflected specs of light onto the floor, and a spotlight shone on Clark and Lana. Clark placed his hands on Lana's waist, and Lana put her hands on Clark's shoulders. Lana rested her head on Clark's chest as they swayed to the music. Lana looked up at Clark and Clark looked down at Lana. Clark started to move his head down closer to Lana's for a kiss.

Okay, I'm not staying for this.

Nicola turned around and was about to remove herself from the orb, but someone screaming, "Oh my God! They're floating!" caught Nicola's attention.

She spun around to see Lana and Clark floating 6 feet in the air. This wasn't really unusual to Nicola since many people dreamed that they could fly or float, but something told her to stay. She watched as Clark and Lana floated back down to the ground.

"What's going on Clark?" Lana asked.

"There's something I've been wanting to tell you," started Clark. "I'm not like other guys."

"That's right, you aren't Clark," Nicola heard another voice say. She saw a blonde guy walk up to Lana's side. "You're a freak. Come on Lana, let's get away from this freak. We don't know what he's capable of."

The blonde led Lana away from Clark. Suddenly, dozens of FBI agents were in the room.

"Let's capture him for tests!" yelled a FBI agent.

Clark looked like he is about to fight him off when of the agents took out a green meteorite from behind his back. Clark suddenly fell to the ground and became defenseless as the agents start to take him away.

All right, enough of this.

Nicola concentrated, and all of the agents disappeared, along with the piece of the meteorite. Time to go back to the happy part of the dream. She thought of Lana, and suddenly Lana materializes next to Clark.

"I believe our dance got interrupted," Lana said to Clark who was still on the ground.

Clark quickly got up and smiled at Lana.

"I believe you're right," replied Clark.

The music started back up again and Clark and Lana went back to dancing.

Time to go. Sweet dreams Clark.

She snapped out of the dream and was back in her room. She glanced at her alarm clock and the red numbers told her it was 12:05 AM. A yawn escaped her mouth. I guess it's time for sleep.

Nicola set her alarm clock for 7:00 AM, even though she knew she'd be up way before then. It was more of a warning call to hurry up and finish getting ready for school.

She closed her eyes and tried to go to sleep, but Clark's dream was still in her head. What was up with that? That seemed like a dream I would have, being called a freak and getting hauled away by the FBI. But before she could continue her pondering, sleep defeated her thoughts, and she slowly drifted off to her own dreamworld, unaware of what she would discover the next day.


	3. First Week Smallville High

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Rating: PG-13 due to mild cussing.

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Disclaimer: Still don't own Smallville.

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Author's notes: _Italic =_ Nicola's thoughts.

Sorry it took me so long to write this chapter, I've been really busy. Hopefully I'll be able to write my chapters quicker so I can post them more often. 

**To those who have already read this chapter: I added more in this chapter at where Nicola and Clark talk**. (I hope it's kinda of what you wanted becs)

I guessed on where things in Smallville High were and how long it took to get from Clark's bus stop to school. I'm not sure what grade Whitney is in, so I decided to make him a senior since he was talking about a scholarship in the episode "Craving."

I read an episode recap of "Craving" to try to parallel what happened in the show to what happens in my story. I had to guess when things happened; like I guessed that that early Friday morning Lex was at the Torch because he told Clark he'd see him tomorrow (I think it was implied that he meant Saturday at Lana's party), then a little later that morning, but before school started, Clark was in the bleachers with Lana, then that Dustin guy got the fat sucked out of him, and then later Chloe and Clark ate lunch with Jodi. Not sure if it was right, but it works for me.

Thanks to everyone who reviewed, I really appreciate the feedback.

Please Review, it will make me more motivated to write faster.

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By the time Nicola's alarm clock had gone off at 7 AM, she had been up for a little over four hours. She had gone over her regular 2 hours of sleep by 34 minutes. In the 4 hours she had been up, Nicola had managed to put light blue highlights in her light brown hair, changed her nail polish bottle filled with black nail polish into a light blue that matched her highlights, applied the nail polish to her nails, put together her school stuff, pick some CDs to listen to at school, put her shoulder-length hair in a ponytail, change into the clothes she had decided to wear for school, and put on some socks and shoes.

Nicola turned off her alarm clock and thought about last minute preparations. She went to her bookshelf and took out her copy of _Where the Heart Is, _then took her CD player and CD case, and put all three into her messenger bag. She slung the strap over her shoulder and walked up her basement stairs to the kitchen. In there she found her mom, Brad, and Katie, eating breakfast.

"Morning," greeted Nicola.

"Morning, sweetie," replied Juliet.

Nicola grabbed a raspberry Danish and put some Tabasco sauce in it. As she took a bite, Nicola saw Brad make a face.

"What? I can't help it, I like sweet and spicy things."

"I know, but it still looks disgusting," replied Brad.

She opened the fridge and took out the jug chocolate milk. She poured some into a glass and put the jug back into the fridge. As she drank and ate her breakfast, she watched the news on the small kitchen TV. According to the weather anchor, it was supposed to be cloudy and chilly that day. There was nothing big in the news, so Nicola didn't pay much attention to the news after the weather report.

In seven minutes, she managed to consume two Tabasco-covered raspberry Danishes and two glasses of chocolate milk. She went to the downstairs bathroom, washed her face, and brushed her teeth. Doing those two activities took about 5 minutes, leaving 22 minutes till the bus would arrive to take her to school.

"I'm going to wait for the bus outside," Nicola informed her mom.

"Alright," replied Juliet.

Nicola walked out of the house to the front porch. She sat on the porch swing from where she could see the road that the bus would be waiting for her. She set the alarm on her watch for 7:35, took out her book and discman, and then slid the headphones over her ears. She turned the volume down on her CD so she would still be able to hear her watch's alarm go off. As the sounds of Sum41 entered her ears, she opened her book to the first chapter and started to read. 

17 minutes later, Nicola's alarm went off, catching her attention. She pushed the button that stopped the alarm, folded the corner of the page she was one before she closed the book and shoved it back into her bag. She grabbed her bag, took hold of her discman, and then opened her front door.

"I'm going!" she yelled.

"Okay sweetie, have a nice day," Nicola heard her mom call back.

Nicola closed the front door and walked down the porch steps. She slung her messenger bag strap over her shoulder as she sauntered down the short driveway to the main road. Soon she arrived on the side of the paved road that led to town. She turned the music on her discman up and waited for the bus to arrive.

The bus arrived a minute ahead of schedule. Nicola climbed up the bus steps and observed the passengers. There were about only 12 other people on the bus and recognized the two who sat at the back of the bus; Chloe and the person Chloe was sitting next to. She recognized the person as the guy Clark and Chloe were talking to in Clark's dream. 

Nicola headed for the back of the bus towards Chloe and her friend, and smiled to Chloe as she sat in the vacant seat front of her. She pushed the stop button on her discman, then pulled her headphones down so the hung around her neck.

"Hi Chloe," said Nicola as she pushed her back up against the bus window and her feet on the seat so her body faced the aisle.

"Hey there Nicola," replied Chloe.

Chloe's friend nudged her a little and gave her the 'aren't you going to introduce me?' look.

"Oh, Nicola, this is my friend, Pete," introduced Chloe.

"Hello Nicola, nice to meet you," said Pete friendily as he extended his hand.

"Same," replied Nicola as she took Pete's hand to shake it.

"So what were you listening to?" asked Pete.

"Sum41."  
"Oh, love that band," commented Chloe.

"Yeah, I went to their concert in Metropolis Amphitheater over the summer. They were so awesome."

"I really wanted to go to that, but I couldn't score any tickets."

"That's too bad. Maybe I can use my 'connections' to get us some tickets for the next time they come to Metropolis."

"You have connections?"

"Okay, it's more like I know someone who works at the Amphitheater, but they usually can get me really good seats on their discount."

"That's awesome."

"So Pete what kind of music do you listen to?"

"Mostly hip-hop and R&B," replied Pete.

"That's cool," smiled Nicola. "I like all sorts of music, myself."

"Even that boy-band/pop princess crap?" asked Chloe.

"Yes, I am into the pop music 'crap' as you like to call it," replied Nicola in a monotone voice.

"Sorry if I offended you."

"You didn't. You have your opinion, I have mine. I like to agree to disagree with people. It makes life less complicated."

"I agree."

"Oh, I forgot to mention this yesterday when we met. I stumbled onto The Torch's website a couple days ago and read two of your articles from two issues ago. I really liked the one about a decent boyfriend, but I was really intrigued by your article about the weird stuff you said that was happening in Smallville."

"Really?"

"Yeah. So I take it a lot of strange stuff has happened in Smallville?"  
"Yep. At least once a week."

"So what's your theory?"

"Well," started Chloe, but then she paused. "Why don't I tell you after school when I can show you something."

"All right, sounds cool."

The bus stopped and their conversation was interrupted as Pete yelled, "Hey Clark. Nice to see you actually not miss the bus for once."

"Ha, ha," replied Clark.

Clark reached where they were sitting, then he stopped and looked down at the seat where Nicola's feet were on.

"Is this seat reserved?" asked Clark.

"Nope, it's all yours," replied Nicola.

Nicola removed her feat off the seat and brushed off any dirt with her hand. Clark sat down next to her.

"So are you excited?" Clark asked Nicola.

"About starting at a new school? No. A tad nervous, yes, but definitely not excited. I mean, it is still a high school, they are basically all the same no matter where you go."

"True."

"There isn't any new kid initiation thing is there? Like someone telling me there is a Olympic-size pool on the roof, but really it's a trap to lock me up on the roof."

"Those pranks usually only happen to the new guys, not girls."

"Oh, thank God. I'm not really in the mood for pranks today.So Clark, is there anything exciting happening this week that I should be aware of?"

"No, nothing I can think of," said Clark in an unsure tone.

"Clark, you're a horrible liar. Let me guessbig party this weekend?"

"Yeah," gave in Clark.

"Is it yours?"

"No, it's Lana Lang's birthday party."

"Oh, the girl with the dark hair who sat with us yesterday?"

"That'd be the one."

"That's nice."

They dropped the subject of the party and Clark started a new one.

"Hey Pete, Nicola here wanted to try-out for football at her school."

"Really? That's cool," replied Pete. "What did you want to play?"

"Wide-end receiver," answered Nicola. "Were you on the team?"

"Yeah, but I was only a third-string half-back."

"At least you made a team."

"Why didn't you get to try-out?"

"My parents refused to sign the permission slip since my freshman year because they thought it was too dangerous for a girl. They wouldn't even let me try-out as the punter."

"That's too bad. Clark here went through the same thing, well except for the being a girl part."

"Yeah, I know, he told me yesterday."

"So, Nicola, what was Metropolis High like?" asked Chloe.

"It was really big, for one, and had an awesome darkroom for their photography class."

"Oh, you took a photography class there?"

"Yeah. I was in second year photography and became a photographer for the newspaper and yearbook this year before I moved."

"That's cool. Maybe you could show me your stuff sometime and if it's good I can persuade The Torch's advisor to add you to the staff, we could always use another photographer."

"That'd be wicked."

The bus stopped for the last time, and was now in front of Smallville High School. Nicola, Chloe, Pete, and Clark stood up and grabbed their bags. Nicola put her discman and headphones away, and then walked into the aisle, moving slowly to the front of the bus.

As Nicola walked off the bus, she stared at the school. She wasn't expecting it to be this big. It had four floors, including the basement. Metropolis High was only a little bigger than SHS.

"Not what you were expecting?" asked Chloe noticing Nicola staring at the brick building.

"Not really," replied Nicola as they walked towards the front doors. "I thought it would be smaller."

"Well, there are only about three options for high-schoolers. They can either A) go to a nearby private or public school in a neighboring county, which is not recommended; B) Be home-schooled, which is not a popular choice; or finally the most common choice of Smallville residents C) attend Smallville High School."

"So basically, almost all the people who have lived in Smallville, attended Smallville High, and if they haven't yet, they probably will?"

"Yep."

"Such a wide variety of choices," said Nicola sarcastically.

They reached the front steps and walked through the doors that lead to the front hall. 

"So, can anyone point me in the direction of the main office?" Nicola asked her first three acquaintances at SHS.

"It's not that far. I can show you where it is, if you want" volunteered Pete.

"Thanks," smiled Nicola. She then said to Chloe and Clark, "I'll see you guys later then, I guess."

"I'll catch up with you guys after I show Nicola where the office is, alright?"

"Alright," replied Clark. "See you later Nicola."

"Bye," said Chloe.

Clark and Chloe walked off in one direction, while Pete started to walk in the other, followed by Nicola. About 20 steps later, they stopped in front of a door marked "Main Office."

"Here it is," said Pete.

"Thanks again," said Nicola.

"No problem."

"Maybe I'll see you at lunch or in a class or something."

"Yeah, see you later."

"Bye."

As Nicola walked into the main office to get her schedule, Pete walked to his locker that he shared with Clark. He soon reached the locker, and found Clark and Chloe standing in front of their adjacent lockers.

"Hey there Pete, you get Nicola to the office in one piece?" laughed Chloe.

"Ha, ha," said Pete. "I was just being nice."

"It would have been just as easy if you had told her it was down the hall a couple of feet and had a sign above it that obviously pointed out that was the main office."

"Come on Chloe, cut him some slack," said Clark.

"Sorry," said Chloe backing off the subject.

"I'll admit though, she is very cute," commented Pete.

"See, you may be nice, but I knew there was an alterior motive. Don't get your hopes up though Pete. She's a junior, which means she's way out of your league."

Pete slightly glared at Chloe but then turned to his locker to exchange books from his locker to his bag.

"What did you think of Nicola, Clark?" asked Pete.

"She seemed nice," replied Clark.

"Nice? That's the only adjective you can use to describe her?"

"I don't exactly know her that well, Pete."

"How about cute or attractive or pretty? Or are those words only reserved for a certain girl with the initials L.L.?"

"Will you two ever lay off about how I feel about Lana?"

"What's this about Lana?" they heard a voice say from behind them.

Clark, Chloe, and Pete turn around and see Nicola standing before them.

"How much of that did you hear?" asked Pete.

"All I heard was Clark say 'about Lana,'" replied Nicola, although she knew what Clark was probably talking about.

"Clark here was saying how everyone is talking about Lana because her big party is this weekend," covered Chloe.

"Oh."

"So, what's up?"

"Well, the secretary told me to go to the counselor's office, but I got lost. Thank God I was passing by here and noticed you three."

"You walked in the wrong direction. The counselor's office is back down the hall, past the office, and it would be to your left. Can't miss it, there's a sign over the door."

"Alright, thanks."

Nicola turned around and walked back in the direction she came from.

"Do you guys think she heard more than what she said she did?" asked Pete.

"I don't think so," said Clark. "She seemed like she was telling the truth."

"Then again, she could be a very good liar," replied Chloe.

Pete glanced at his watch and realized it was time to head to class.

"The bell's about to ring," said Pete.

They closed their lockers and started walking to their first period class.

~~ Meanwhile in the counselor's office ~~

"I'm here to see Ms. Thelen," Nicola informed the lady at the front desk.

"Nicola Lively, correct?" asked the lady, looking at a sheet of paper.

"Yes."

"Ms. Thelen is over there, first door to your right."

"Thank you."

Nicola walked in the direction the lady had pointed at and faced the first room on the right. The door was open, making the counselor visible from the small hallway. Ms. Thelen, a plump, Caucasian woman in her late 40s wearing thick-rimmed glasses, was sitting in a comfy, leather chair in front of a small desk that was near the back of the small room, looking through papers. Nicola knocked on the doorway, bringing Ms. Thelen's attention to her.

"Oh hello," said Ms. Thelen cheerfully. "Come in. Sit."

Ms. Thelen gestured to the seat that was in front of her desk. As Nicola sat down in the chair, a bell rang.

"I am Ms. Thelen, counselor to those with last names that begin with the letters G through L. You must be Nicola Lively," said Ms. Thelen as she extended her hand for a handshake. "Welcome to Smallville High School."

"Thank you," smiled Nicola.

"So, I was reviewing your transcripts from Metropolis High. It says in here that you have always got straight A's and scored very high tests scores that could have let you graduate a couple years ago, but you chose to stay in the grade you are in."

"Yes, that's correct."

"May I ask why. If I was a smart as you, I would have graduated as early as I could so I could start college and a career as soon as I could."

"I thought about that, but then I decided that it's hard enough to be in high school when you're 15, so it must be even tougher as a 11 year old. I want to experience life as I should be by being in classes with people my own age."

"I can understand that. I've also read over your schedule for Metropolis High and have managed to match up several of your classes, but I couldn't get you onto the yearbook committee or a Pre-Calculus class since there weren't any that would coincide with the rest of your classes. However, I was able to place you into a Theatre class and Trigonometry class. Are you comfortable with those two choices, or would you rather have something else, like maybe a study hall?"

"Those classes are fine. But don't I need to pass certain math classes before taking Trig?"

"Yes, but since you did so well on your math scores in the past, I see no problem with moving you up. Is that is all right with you?"

"Sure, I guess."

"Good."

Ms. Thelen turned to the computer that was on an adjoining desk, and clicked print with her mouse. Seconds later, a copy of Nicola's schedule transcript was printed. Ms. Thelen took the paper out of the printer and handed it to Nicola.

"Here is your schedule. Show this to the librarian and she will get you the books you need. But before that, go ask the counseling office's secretary, Miss Greenly, for a locker assignment. When you are done getting your books and finding your locker, report to your first period class if the bell hasn't rang."

"Okay."

"I hope you find SHS to your liking. It was nice to meet you."

"Same."

"Oh, and by the end of this week, go see Ms. Finch in the activities about an student body card. If you ever need to see me, feel free to drop in if I appear not to be busy or make an appointment with Miss Greenly."

"Okay."

Nicola walked out of the door back to the front desk. 

"I need a locker," Nicola said to Miss Greenly.

Miss Greenly opened a drawer and took out a half-sheet of paper. She took a pencil and circled some things.

"These are your combination and locker number, and this is where your locker is located."

"Thank you. Ummwhere is the library?" 

"After you exit this room, it is to your right down the hall, take a left, then it is the third door to your left."

"Thanks again," said Nicola.

She walked out of the counseling office into a deserted hallway. She turned right walked to the end of the hall, took a left, then counted three doors on her left. She opened the third door and walked through the doors. Nicola got the attention of the librarian and got her necessary books, then walked out of the library to find her locker. She glanced at the paper with the locker info and read that her locker was next to room 115.

She scanned above one of the classroom doors and it said 136, which meant her locker was probably on the other side of the school. She walked down toward the other side of school until she got to the end of the hall. She found room 115, then searched around for her locker.

Within seconds, Nicola located her locker and started to spin her locker combination. The locker opened easily and Nicola tossed in two of her four books into it. She took her CD case from her bag and placed it on the top shelf. She closed her locker, then looked at her schedule. 1st period was Trigonometry in room 316 with Mr. Paulson.

She climbed up two flights of stairs and walked down the hall to the room. The door to the classroom was left open and Nicola could see the math teacher writing on the overhead, explaining something to the class. Nicola stepped through the doorway, and she saw the whole classes' eyes turn to stare at her instantly. When Mr. Paulson notices his class's attention leave him, he looked up to see what had interrupted his classroom.

"Yes?" asked Mr. Paulson.

"I'm a new student," Nicola informed him.

"Okay. Can I see your transcript?"

"Sure."

Nicola handed him the piece of paper in her hand, and Mr. Paulson took it with him to his desk. He grabbed a role book, opened it open, and wrote Nicola's name at the bottom of the list.

"All right Miss Lively, please sit" Mr. Paulson scanned around the room for an empty desk. "Behind Mr. Fordman. Could you raise your hand Whitney?"

Nicola looked at the class and waited for someone to raise their hand. She immediately saw a blonde guy's hand raise in the air.

__

He looks familiar.

As Nicola got closer to the guy, she realized that this was the blonde that was in Clark's dream. She took her seat behind Whitney, and placed her books on the desk. She took out her binder and a pencil, when suddenly another realization hit her. _Whitney. This blonde is Lana's boyfriend. Now the dream makes a little more sense._

Nicola turned her concentration to the teacher, and copied all the notes that were on the overhead and ten minutes later the bell rang. She collected all of her things and started to walk to the front of the class.

"So were you able to understand what we were learning today?" Mr. Paulson asked her.

"Yes, I was," replied Nicola.

"Good. You may want to ask someone for their notebook to copy past notes."

"Alright."

As Nicola walked out of the classroom, she glanced at which class she had next. _ English. Such fun._ The class was in room 109 and the teacher was Ms. Moore. She walked down the closest staircase, and found her way to her class.

She walked through the class's doorway and walked up to the teacher. She introduced herself to Ms. Moore and showed Ms. Moore her transcript as the class filled the room and took their seats.

"Hello Nicola," said Ms. Moore. "Welcome to Smallville."

"Thank you."

The bell rang and Nicola felt the eyes of the class on her.

"Pleases take a seat in any empty desk."

Nicola took a seat in the back that was empty, and then Ms. Moore explained to Nicola that they have been discussing about "the American Dream."

"What are your thoughts on the American Dream, Nicola?" asked Ms. Moore.

"The American Dream is different for everyone, but one thing that remains true in most ideas of the American Dream is the belief that anyone can beat their adversities and succeed. The American Dream also tends to be a goal that a person wants to attain."

"Good point," said Ms. Moore.

The discussion moved to another student, and Nicola only slightly paid attention. Most of the class time was used for the discussion. 

After the bell rang Nicola asked one of her classmates where her next class was then followed their directions to the class, and found it on the third floor before the bell rang. She walked into the classroom and looked around for the teacher. As she glanced around the room, she noticed Chloe sitting in one of the desks. Nicola gave Chloe a small wave then walked over to the teacher, Mr. Carlson. She went through the same process as the other classes, then took a seat. After 45 minutes of her journalism class, the bell rang. She walked up to Chloe.

"So, how did you enjoy our journalism class?" asked Chloe.

"It was okay," replied Nicola. She pulled out her schedule and took a look. Her next class was photography. "Do you know how to get to room 33?"

"Yeah you go down the hall to the stairway to the basement. Can't miss it."

"Okay, thanks. I'll see you later."

"Alright."

Chloe and Nicola went into separate directions to their next classes. She found her way to the photography room and got situated. After 47 minutes of taking notes on slides of photos, the bell rang, signaling that it was lunchtime. Nicola walked up to the cafeteria and got into the lunch line. She grabbed at tray, selected the food she wanted, then paid for her lunch. She glanced around the cafeteria to find Pete, Chloe, or Clark. She saw them sitting at a table, then walked over to them.

"Can I sit here?" Nicola asked them.

"Sure," replied Pete.

Nicola put her tray on the table, then sat across from Pete in the empty seat next to Chloe.

"So how are your classes so far?" asked Pete.

"They're alright. I had Trig, English, Journalism, and Photography."

"You take Trigonometry?"

"Unfortunately. At Metropolis I was taking Pre-Calculus, but because of my high test scores and the fact that all the Pre-Calculus classes here were full, the counselor decided I should take Trig."

"Are you like extremely smart?" asked Chloe.

"Something like that," replied Nicola, not about to tell these new people that she has the ability to learn things quickly because of her alien origins.

"What do you have after lunch?" asked Pete.

Nicola took her schedule out of her bag, then looked at it.

"5th period I have Theatre with Lane, 6th period I have Environmental Science with Pilasco, and Japanese with Iona."

"You have science with us," Chloe informed Nicola.

"Great," smiled Nicola.

"I can show you where those classes are before lunch is over," volunteered Pete.

Clark and Chloe tried to conceal their laughing faces, but Pete saw them and glared at them.

"Thanks, Pete, that's really nice of you," smiled Nicola.

Pete, Nicola, Clark, and Chloe continued eating and talking until Pete and Nicola were finished eating. They left Clark and Chloe and went off to the hallways. Pete took Nicola to all three of her classes. As he showed her to the last class, the bell rang. Pete walked Nicola to the Theatre room, then after he dropped her off.

"See you in science," said Pete before he went to his own class.

~~~~~ Skip ahead a couple of hours ~~~~~~

Nicola sat in her Japanese class, her last class for the day, and stared at the minute hand on the clock. _Come on. Hit the damn 12 soon._ 2 minutes passed and the bell rang, signaling the end of the school day. The class filed out of the classroom, filling the halls along with other students. She made her way to her locker with her Japanese and science books in hand. As she opened her locker, one of the books fell out of her grasp, and landed on the floor. She ignored the book, and decided to concentrate on her other books first.

Nicola put her Trig and Japanese books into her bag, and took hold of her English book. She looked down to the ground to pick up her fallen science book to find a pair of feet instead of a book there. She looked up to see that Clark had her book in his hand.

"I think you dropped this," said Clark.

"Thanks Clark," said Nicola.

She gazed into Clark's gorgeous hazel eyes and grabbed for the book. As she grabbed the book, Nicola's hand made contact with Clark's, causing Nicola to have a sudden connection as she heard Clark say, "So"

Nicola got a flood of images. First she saw meteorites falling to earth and a spaceship hitting the ground. Next was of a three-year-old, in the flesh, wandering to a young couple in a truck that was flipped over. Images of Lana at different ages and Clark meeting Pete and later Chloe. Nicola got images of Clark getting hit by a silver Porsche, surviving, then rescuing Lex Luthor. She also saw (insert many other major scenes from episodes up to "Hour Glass"). What seemed to last forever to Nicola, only lasted about 30 seconds in real time. To Clark it seemed like she had blacked out.

"Are you okay?" Clark asked Nicola when she came back to reality.

"Yeah, just got a little dizzy is all," lied Nicola. _What the hell was that about?_

"Do want me to take you to see the nurse?"

"No, I'm fine. I gotta go," said Nicola. She grabbed the book from Clark then told him she'd talk to him later.

She walked off as fast as she could to the closest bathroom and went into one of the stalls. She waited until she was sure the bathroom was empty before orbing out of the school to her room. 

~~~~ Back to Clark at his own locker ~~~~

Clark took his books out of his locker and shoved them into his bag as Chloe and Pete came over to him.

"Hey Clark, have you seen Nicola?" Chloe asked him.

"Yeah, I just talked to her at her locker, but then she had to leave."

"Huh, that's strange, I was going to show her my wall of weird," frowned Chloe.

"Well, no wonder she left in such a hurry," grinned Clark.

Chloe gave Clark a small shove.

"Ha, ha."

"I asked her if she was still going to meet you, but it was right as she blacked-out."

"Blacked-out?" repeated Chloe.

"Is she alright?" asked Pete.

"Yeah. It was only for like half a minute. She seemed fine though."

"I wonder why she ran off," pondered Chloe.

"I don't know," replied Clark. "But we better start going if we wanna catch the bus."

Clark closed his locker and he, Chloe, and Pete walked to the front of the school to the bus.

~~~ Back to Nicola's room ~~~~

As soon as her feet touched the basement's wood floors, Nicola tossed her bag onto the ground then sprinted the darkroom to see if Brad had left any pictures in the filing cabinet, but unfortunately he hadn't. Nicola went upstairs to see if Brad was home and found him in the living room.

"Where did you put the photos?" Nicola asked him.

"Hello to you too," said Brad.

"Yeah, hello. Anyway, where did you put the photos of the meteor shower?"

"Why do want to know?"

"I wanted to look-over one again."

"Fine, they're up in the attic."

"Thank you."

Nicola scurried up the flight of stairs and pulled down the attic stairs. She walked up the stairs and entered the attic. She used her powers to turn on the lights, then searched the room for the box of pictures. She had to be sure that the meteors and ship she saw in Clark's memories were the same as the pictures.

Nicola saw the box and opened up. She grabbed one of the photos, closed the attic door, turned off the light, and then orbed back to her room. When she got to her room, she took a look at it. There was no denying it; the ship in Clark's memories was the same as the one in this photo. She paced around her room contemplating what to do. Thoughts raced through her mind. _Does this mean that Clark was the kid in the spacecraft? Now the dream makes total sense. What am I going to? Maybe I should talk to momthis isn't for me to tell. Maybe I should tell Clark I know. NoI can't just go up to someone and say, "Hey, I know you're an alien. But that's cool with me since I'm not from around here either." _

She sat on the edge of her bed and placed her head in her hands. _Man, what the hell am I going to do?_ She flew her head back, lying on her bed. _Normal, just act normal. Act like nothing happened. That's right._ Nicola decided to do some homework and listen to music to distract her. Two hours passed, and Nicola heard her mom calling from the top of her basement stairs telling her she had a phone call.

"Coming!" Nicola yelled back.

Nicola closed her math book, turned off the music, and then trotted up the stairs, into the kitchen. She grabbed the cordless phone from her mom.

"Thanks," said Nicola.

"Dinner's almost ready," her mom told her.

"Alright," replied Nicola.

She walked back downstairs to her room and put the phone to her ear.

"Hello?"

"Hi Nicola. It's Chloe."

"Oh hey Chloe. How did you get this number?"

"I have my ways"

"You have connections?"

"Okay, so I called the operator."

"So what's up?"

"What happened after school?"

"After school?"

"Remember, you were going to meet me at my locker and I was going to show you something in The Torch's office?"

"Oh right," said Nicola, suddenly remember. _I must have forgot with the whole Clark thing._ "Sorry about that. I wasn't feeling really well."

"I know, Clark told me about your black-out."

"Did he?"

"So how are you feeling now?"

"I'm fine now. I took a little nap as soon as I got home," lied Nicola.

"How did you get home? I mean, I didn't see you on the bus"

"My mom picked me up," Nicola lied again, quickly.

"Oh, okay."

"Well, I have to go eat dinner."

"Alright, well, I guess I'll show you what I wanted to show you at the end of lunch tomorrow."

"Okay. And I promise I won't flake on you this time."

"You better not. I'll talk to you later."

"Alright. Bye"

Nicola hung up the phone then walked back upstairs to the kitchen. The rest of the family was sitting at the kitchen table, beginning to eat dinner. On the kitchen table Nicola saw homemade burgers and fries.

"Who was that on the phone?" Juliet asked Nicola as she placed the phone on the counter.

"Chloe Sullivan," replied Nicola as grabbed a plate from one of the cabinets then sat in the empty chair at the table with her family. She made herself a plate of food, then started eating. As she ate, Nicola seemed in a slight daze, which Juliet noticed.

"Nicola? Are you alright?"

"Huh? What?" asked Nicola, snapping out of her daze.

"Are you alright?" repeated Juliet.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

Juliet frowned and gazed out her daughter.

"I told you not to go through my mind for information," Nicola snapped at her mind.

"I wasn't," said Juliet. "But how am I supposed to know what's going on in there if you don't tell me?"

"If there's something you need to know, I'd tell you."

There was a short pause before Juliet asked Nicola if she had a bad first day of school.

"No mom. School was fine."

"Was it that Chloe girl? Was she mean to you?"

"No mom."

"Then what's wrong?"

"NOTHING!" 

Nicola orbed out of the kitchen down to her room. She laid back on her bed wishing that she was normal. If she had been a normal human she wouldn't be in the dilemma she was in now. She wouldn't have found out Clark's secret and scenarios on how to deal with this situation wouldn't be filling her mind. _I need another distraction_With her mind she brought her Discman and her book _Where the Heart Iz_ to her. She slipped the headphones that were attached to the discman over her ears, pushed the play button, and then started to read her book.

More hours had passed, but Nicola wasn't really concentrating on the book. For the first 10 minutes she kept reading the same paragraph over and over, not really even reading it the first time. Her mind kept wandering back to the Clark thing. _Could I really act like nothing happened? Why can't I be a normal human being with no powers? _Then something new popped in her head. _What would I want someone to do if they found out my secret? Well, obviously, I wouldn't want them to tell anyone and I definitely don't want them to act like I am a totally freak This situation sucks. Stop stressing it, Nicola. Do something to occupy your time. Homework...that's what I'll do._

She grabbed her bag, then moved to the desk. Nicola decided she should take her time on her homework to pass time. Luckily, since she was doing her homework half heartily, it took few hours to finish it, which was when she felt it was time for sleep.

~~~ The next day: 7:25 AM ~~~

Nicola had been awake for a good 4 and a half hours, and managed push the Clark situation to the back of her mind. She was basically ready for school and the bus would be there soon, but, even though she tried to stop thinking about the Clark situation, she dreaded having to see Clark on the bus.

"Can I get a ride to school?" Nicola asked her mom.

"What's wrong with the bus?" asked Juliet.

"Nothing, I just need to get to school a little earlier for my student ID card," lied Nicola.

"And you didn't you tell me this yesterday?" 

"I'm sorry, it sort of slipped my mind."

"Fine," sighed Juliet. "Go start the car."

"Thank you."

Nicola grabbed the keys to the Exterra and went out to the car. She got into the car, then started the engine. In less than a minute, Juliet walked out of the house and climbed into the car.

"Do you need money for the card?" asked Juliet as she drove down to the main road.

"No, I have some."

"Okay."

"Oh, mom, can I re-new my license at the DMV after school?"

"I guess. Are you going to pay for it?"

"Yeah."

Nicola clicked on the radio and the music filled the car until they got to the school. 

"Be out here after school," Juliet told Nicola.

"Okay. See you after school."

Nicola got out of the car, closed the door behind her, and then walked into the school. She walked down the halls and came across the Activities Office. _Since I'm here_ Nicola walked into the office and found Ms. Finch sitting at her desk writing something down on a piece of paper.

"Excuse me"

Ms. Finch looked up from the paper.

"May I help you?" asked Ms. Finch.

"Yes, Ms. Thelen told me to come here for a student body card."

"Name please?"

"Nicola Lively."

Ms. Finch looked through some folders in a filing cabinet and found the one she was looking for. Inside was a student body card that had Nicola's name, grade, and student ID number on it, but no picture. Ms. Finch walked to the closet and pulled out a small screen, then went back to the closet to take out a camera thing for ID cards.

"Do you have money for the activity sticker?" asked Ms. Finch.

"Yes. How much is it?"

"15 dollars."

"Okay."

Nicola took 15 dollars out of her pocket then handed it to Ms. Finch.

"Take a seat."

Nicola placed her bag on the ground, sat in the seat that was in front of the screen, and then waited for Ms. Finch to take the picture. The lights flashed, and the photo was taken.

"You can pick your card up at lunch or after school," said Ms. Finch.

"All right. Thanks."

Nicola stood up, grabbed her bag, and then left the room. As she walked into the hall she noticed that the halls were filled with more people. When she got to her locker, the bell rang, signaling the students had ten minutes until they had to get to class. She put some of her books into the locker and shut the door.

She decided to go to her Trig class earlier so she can wait to get friendly with a classmate so she could borrow their notes. She left her locker and walked up to her Trig class.

~~ Skip to Lunchtime ~~

Nicola had managed to get notes from someone in her Trig class and survived through the rest of her morning classes. She got into the cafeteria food line, grabbed yogurt and a spoon, then paid for it. She walked out of the cafeteria and went down the hall to the Activities Office. Nicola walked into the room to find it empty, but she saw her card on the edge of the desk. She grabbed the picture and looked at it. _Ughbad picture._ Her hair was slightly messy in its ponytail._ No problema little alien magic will do the trick._ She put her thumb over her face and a soon she moved her thumb the picture looked fine.

She walked down the hall with her ID card in hand, and spotted Chloe and Pete with a girl she didn't recognize that was drinking something from a thermos. She was in close proximity when she saw two dumb jocks with a basketball in one of their hands walk up to Chloe, Pete, and the girl and make a crack about Pete being to busy whale watching.

_She isn't that fat._

Before Nicola could do anything to stop it, the basketball went flying towards the girl, hitting the cup in her hand, resulting in the green shake goop to go all over her. As the girl ran away in near tears, the dumb jock said, "You'd think someone that big would have thicker skin."

Nicola was about to say something to the guy when Pete tossed the ball at the guys' head.

"You'd think someone that stupid would have a thicker head," Nicola heard Chloe say.

Nicola felt bad for the girl and decided to go help her clean up, but first she walked up to Chloe and Pete.

"Hey guys, what's up?" said Nicola.

"Just an encounter with a few of dumb asses. Do you wanna go see my theory now?"

"Um, in a sec. I'll be right back."

Nicola left Chloe and Pete, then walked into the bathroom she saw the girl go into. She found the girl crying while she attempted to clean the green goo off of her.

"Here let me help you with that," Nicola said to the girl.

Nicola grabbed a paper towel and soaked some water on it.

"Oh, you don't have to," said the girl.

"I know, but I want to."

Nicola started to wipe the goo off, using her powers to help take all of it off the sweater. When she was done, there was no trace of the goop.

"Thank you," the girl said, trying to smile.

"It was no problem. My name's Nicola."

"Jodi."

"Nice to meet you."

"Same."

"I'm sorry what happened out there. Guys can be such jerks."

"Yeah"

"Well, I have to go meet someone. Maybe I'll see you around."

"Okay."

Nicola smiled at Jodi, then walked out of the bathroom, back to Chloe and Pete.

"Ready to go?" asked Chloe.

"Yeah."

Chloe noticed that Nicola had something in her hand.

"What you have there?" asked Chloe.

"Oh, I had to take a picture for my ID card this morning."

" How did it turn out?" 

Nicola handed Chloe the card and Chloe looked the picture over.

"Ugh, I hate you. My pictures always look bad."

"I'm just lucky, I guessso where are we going?"

"Just follow me."

Chloe led Nicola down the school's halls until the got to the Torch's office. Chloe opened the door and walked into the Torch followed by Nicola.

"This is my theory," said Chloe, gliding her hand towards a wall full of pictures and articles in a Vanna White-esque way.

"And what would this be?"

"This is what I like to call my _Wall of Weird._ It holds every strange thing that has happened in Smallville since the meteor shower of October 25, 1989."

"So your theory is that every strange thing that has happened in the last 12 years, especially recent events, was because of the meteors?"

"Precisely."

"HmmI like it."

Nicola walked towards the wall to get a closer look while Chloe went to the computer to type something really quick. As she looked at the articles a little longer a voice from behind her startled her.

"I see Chloe has shown you her _Wall of Weird,_" a male voice from behind her said making Nicola jump.

Nicola turned around and glared at the guy.

"God Clark, don't sneak up on me like that."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to."

"That's alright."

"So, what do you think about it?"

"About what?"

"Chloe's theory that all of the things on the wall are because of the meteor shower."

"Umm" started Nicola. Suddenly the remembrance of the images from Clark filled her head. _Gotta get out of here. _She looked up the clock. "I have to go see my Theatre teacher before the class starts. I'll talk to you later."

She started to walk to the door and told Chloe she'd see her later.

"All right bye," replied Chloe.

Nicola hustled out of the room and down the hall. She decided to purchase something to drink before heading to her theatre class, so she walked to the vending machines. As Nicola inserted change into the pop machine and pushed the Coca-Cola button, she heard someone say her name from behind her. She turned around to see Lana and Whitney.

"Oh, hey, Lana, right?"

"Right."

"What's up?"

"Oh, nothing much. This is my boyfriend, Whitney."

"We've met."

"Really?"

"Yeah, we're in the same Trig class."

"Oh."

"I heard about your birthday this Saturday. Happy Birthday in advance."

"Thank you. I'm having a party on Saturday night, do you want to come?"

"Are you sure? I mean, don't you have a full attendance list as it is?"

"It's fine. I'll give you an invitation tomorrow."

"Okay, thanks," smiled Nicola.

"Well, I'll see you later."

"Bye."

Lana and Whitney walked down the hall, leaving Nicola by herself. She grabbed the bottle out of the machine and twisted off the cap so she could take a sip out it. She walked down the halls to her theatre class as she drank her pop.

~~~ Skip to Friday, Before School ~~~

After school on Tuesday, Nicola had met her mom in front of the school gone to the DMV was now a licensed driver once again. Although originally she had wanted to act normal around Clark, she spent most of the week avoiding him, just as she had in the Torch's office at lunchtime Tuesday. On Wednesday, Lana had given Nicola one of the invitations to her birthday. Nicola was surprised when she read that the party would be at the Luthor manor and was kind of happy she might get to see Lex again.

Since Nicola had gotten her license renewed on Tuesday, her mom let her borrow the car to get to school early. Now, 30 minutes before the bell would ring for school, Nicola walked down the halls, looking at some of her prints she was thinking of redoing on her way to the photography room to see if the darkroom was open. As she turned at one of the corners, she ran straight into someone, dropping all her photos.

"Sorry," apologized Nicola. She started to bend down to pick of her photos.

"You should really start watching where you're going," replied a familiar voice.

_Oh no, not Lex Luthor again. Great._ Nicola looked up at Lex.

"Don't worry, I'm sure I'll get it soon."

She bent back down and started pick up the photos.

"Here let me help you with that," said Lex.

Lex bent down and helped Nicola pick up the remaining photos. He observed the photos in his hands.

"These are good," Lex complemented Nicola as he handed her back the photos.

"Thanks."

Nicola was about to walk off, but Lex's question stopped her.

"Can you tell me where the Torch's office is?"

"Yeah, you go down this hall, and the door will be on your right. Can't miss it."

"Thanks. Maybe we'll run into each other again," joked Lex.

"Probably," said Nicola, knowing she would see him tomorrow at Lana's party. _Unless I can get out of it. I'll talk to Lana during science._

Lex went towards the Torch to talk to Chloe while Nicola headed towards the darkroom. She got to the photography room and found that it was locked. She sighed and decided it was best if she didn't use her powers to break in. She turned her heel, and walked back up to the main hall.

As she walked back through the main hall, she came across Pete.

"Hey Nicola, what are you doing her so early?"

"I came to develop some pictures. What are you up to?"

"I'm looking for Chloe or Clark. They said they wouldn't be taking the bus because Chloe wanted to check something out. They told me they would see me later today."

"Oh, well Chloe probably is going to be at the Torch sometime this morning."

"Yeah, probably."

"Oh, and Lex Luthor's probably there."

"Lex Luthor? What's he doing here?"

"No clue."

"Well, I'm going to head over there, you gonna stay here?"

"Yeah."

"I'll see you later."  
"All right. Bye."

While Pete walked off to the Torch's office, Nicola walked to her locker and sat down in front of it. She pulled out her discman to play the mixed CD that was inside. She spent the rest of time before her first period listening to the CD.

~~~ Skip to lunch ~~~

Nicola into the cafeteria a little late because she had to stay in her Photography class to finish developing some film and photos. She glanced around looking for Chloe and spotted her by herself at an empty table. Nicola walked over to her and sat down across the table.

"Where are the guys?"

"Don't worry, Clark's not joining us for lunch. He's tutoring Lana some more."

"What do you mean, 'don't worry'?"

"Well, you've been kind of avoiding him all week."

"No I haven't."

"Oh, yes you have. Yesterday when we were talking at my locker, as soon as you saw Clark you said you had to leave and almost ran down the hall."

"No I didn't"

"Please, you were totally avoiding him. Why?"

"That's a big lunch you've got there," commented Nicola about the tray full of food near Chloe, trying to change the subject, which worked.

"Oh, that's not mine. That was Jodi's," replied Chloe.

"Ummhave you noticed that she looks different lately?"

"Different as in she lost a lot of weight in the last 4 days?"

"Yep."

"Yeah, it's kind of hard not to notice. It's so weird how quickly she lost that much weight. I wonder what her secret is."

__

Maybe something with those green rocks, they always are involved in the weird stuff; at least so it seemed from Clark's memories.

"Maybe it's something in those disgusting green shakes she keeps drinking. Do you know where she got them?"

"I think she made them herself from the vegetables in her greenhouse."

"So did you call the hospital like you said you would?" referring to Chloe calling the hospital to see how that mean guy, Dustin, who made fun of Jodi a couple days before, since the topic had been related to Jodi. Apparently, Clark had found him fat-less earlier that morning in the boiler room.

"He went into shock from the loss of fat."

"Wow. But you know what's weird?"

"Huh?"

"Well, you remember how you were telling me about the deer that died had all its fat sucked out it?"

"Yeahso?"

"It's strange how the guy who was mean to Jodi, a girl who suddenly became skinny, went through the same thing as the deer."

"Do you think there connected?"

"All of them?"

"Yeah."

"Well I wouldn't rule anything out considering Smallville has encountered weird things like a bug boy and a pyrokinetic, lunatic coach to name a few."

"True."

There was a short pause, and suddenly Chloe remember Lex's visit to the Torch earlier that day.

"Guess who stopped by the Torch this morning?"

"Lex Luthor."

"How did you know?"

"I'm psychic," joked Nicola. "Actually, I ran into him earlier this morning and he asked me for directions."

"Oh."

The bell rings and Chloe and Nicola get up from the table.

"So, are you going to Lana's party tomorrow night?" asked Nicola.

"Yeah, probably. Are you?"

"Yeah. I mean, it is _the_ 'Party of the Century'," mocked Nicola as they walk out of cafeteria. "God, why does everyone have to be so melodramatic about this party. It's not like it would have been the end of the world if you weren't invited."

"Oh, I know. There are more important things in life than being popular."

"Totally."

"Well, see you in science."

"Alright, bye."

Chloe and Nicola parted ways, each going to their fifth period class.

~~~~ Saturday Night ~~~~

It was 30 minutes until Lana's party started and Nicola was in her room after just taking a shower. Now she was going through her clothes, looking for something to wear. The invitation had said the attire was semi-formal to formal wear. After going through her clothes twice, nothing popped out at her. 

__

I knew I should have planned what I was going to wear yesterday. 

Giving up, Nicola looked through her magazine to search for a good dress and found one. She grabbed one of her dresses and transformed it into a knee-length, black, spaghetti-strapped dress with a little white and orangeish-brown flowers and a frilly bottom.

Nicola slipped on the dress, tan panty-hose, some Mary Jane-styled flats (black dress shoes), and put on a long denim coat. She then used her powers to dry her brown locks. She looked at her hair in the mirror and felt she needed to do something different to it. Right before her eyes, her hair went from her normal mostly-straight hair that had a slight flip at the end, to curly, bouncy hair. She smiled at the results, then put on a coat of her berry-colored, Covergirl Outlast Lipstick, grabbed her purse that had some essentials in it, and then walked upstairs to the bathroom. She set her things on a kitchen bathroom counter and brushed teeth. 

As she walked to the living to join her mom, Brad, Lindsay, and Joey as they watched _Shrek_, the doorbell rang.

"I got it," Nicola told her family. She walked to the door, placed her purse next to the present she bought for Lana that was on a nearby table, and then opened the door to find Chloe standing there with a present in her hand.

"What's going on? Where's Clark?" Nicola asked Chloe.

"Your hair," said Chloe, instead of answering.

"What?"

"It's so curly. Is that natural?"

"No, but Chloe, come on. What's going on? Where's Clark?" repeated Nicola.

"Sorry" replied Chloe, then she got back to the point of why she was there in the first place. "He left to go to Jodi's."

"Why?"

"Umm" started Chloe, pulling Nicola outside. "You know that fat-sucking vampire-like thing that got to Dustin and the deer?"

"Uh, yeah."

"It's Jodi."

"Jodi is a fat-sucking vampire?"

"Something like that."

"And you came up with this how?"

"Jodi's car went to the shop recently and apparently it appeared to have made contact with a deer."

"And how did you find that out."

"I have my resources."

"Okay...so what are we doing now?"

"Well, I am going home."

"You aren't going to the party?"

"No, I have a last minute article to write if I want to get it in Monday's edition of the Torch."

"Okay. Wait. If' you're not going, then why didn't you just call me?"

"I figured you'd believe me more if we talked in person, well that and I was nearby anyway."

"Understandable, I suppose."

"I'm going to go home," said Chloe. "Could you give this present to Lana when you go to the party?"

"Sure, no problem," replied Nicola, taking the gift.

"Well, I'll see you later then."

"Okay, bye."

Chloe walked down Nicola's porch steps to her car, and then drove back to her house while Nicola walked back inside. She placed Chloe's gift on the table next to her own, then made her way to the living room where her family was and sighed as she sat down on one of the love seats.

"Shouldn't you be going now if you were going to be there on time?" asked Juliet.

"I don't want to be on time now that I am going on my own."

"What are you talking about? I thought you were going to get a ride from Chloe," said Juliet.

"Something came up."

"Do you want to borrow the car?"

"That'd be great. Thanks."

Nicola sat there and watched _Shrek _with her family.

"Aren't you going to leave soon?"

"Mom, I want to be fashionably late."

"There is a difference between being fashionably late, and being late-late."

"The movie's almost over, I'll leave when it's done."

"Alright."

They turned their attention back to the movie, and Nicola watched it until it came to the end, which took about 26 minutes. She stood up from the seat.

"I'm going now."

"Okay, bye. Have fun and drive safe."

"I will. Bye."

Nicola walked to the front hall, grabbed her purse, the two presents, and keys off the table, and then walked out of the house to the car. She climbed in then headed off to the Luthor Manor.

After a ten-minute drive, Nicola arrived in front of the Luthor Manor a little over 20 minutes late. As she drove closer, she gawked at the Manor. The manor was large to say the least. It was made out of gray shale stone and looked something out of a movie about Macbeth. The driveway came complete with a valet driver in a red jacket. As Nicola pulled up to the side of the valet drive, he came to her side of the car and opened the door for her.

Nicola grabbed her purse and the two presents, then climbed out of the car. The valet gave her a ticket stub and then took her place in the driver's seat to take the car somewhere to park. Nicola walked up to the front entrance doors and pushed open the doors. Inside was a maitred'/bouncer-type woman standing behind a podium.

_Wow, they're sure going all-out for this._

"Name and invitation please," said the lady.

Nicola shifted the presents under one arm, and pulled out the invitation from her purse. She told the lady her name as she handed the invitation to her. The lady tried not to laugh at Nicola's name as she scrolled down the list of names. Within seconds, the lady quickly found Nicola's name on the guest list and handed the invitation back to Nicola.

"Check your coat and purse to your right."

"Okay," muttered Nicola.

Nicola walked past the lady and walked to the coat check place. She handed over her denim jacket and purse to a man doing coat check, then walked a little further down the hall, following the sounds of the party music. She stepped through some open doors and found dozens of people on the dance floor. Nicola surveyed the room. She recognized a bunch of the people from school. There was a hired DJ spinning tunes and tons of decorations and balloons were all over. She noticed a table next to the refreshments and a large cake that had gifts on it (the table not the cake). She walked over to the table and placed Chloe's gift and her gift on the table.

She poured herself some punch before taking a seat in a chair that was placed next to a wall. Her foot tapped on the floor to the beat of the music as she drank her punch. A new song played and a jock Nicola recognized from school walked up to her as she finished the last of her punch.

"You wanna dance?" asked the jock.

"Sure."

Nicola placed her empty cup on the ground, then followed the jock to the dance floor. The song blaring from the speakers was the remix version of Nelly Furtado's song _Turn Off the Lights._ Nicola danced along with the beat, her curls bouncing right along. The guy she was dancing with moved closer to her and they danced in sync until the song ended.

"Thanks for the dance," Nicola said to the guy, then turned her heel and walked towards the punch bowl again. As she was about to pour herself another glass of punch, some cheerleaders she also recognized walked up to her.

"Oh, hey, you're Nicola right?" asked one of the girls whose name was Tiffany or Tammy or something, Nicola wasn't exactly sure.

"Yeah."

"I like your hair. How did you get it so curly?"

"I used hair curlers."

"Really? Well it looks great."

"Thanks."

With that, the clique of girls left Nicola to go to the other side of the room. She sighed and put the cup back down, not getting herself another scoop of punch. She gazed around the room, looking for the guest of honor, but did not spot her. As much as she wanted to leave, she had promised Lana she would be there. And even though she just met the girl, Nicola didn't want to break the promise. Maybe it was because of the impression of Lana she had gotten from Clark's memories, or maybe it was the fact that Lana had been really nice to her during her first week at Smallville, or maybe it was just the fact that Nicola liked to keep her word. Anyway, Nicola decided to stick it out and stay.

_Maybe I can sneak out of here and look around the manor. And if I get caught, I'll just lie and say I got lost looking for a bathroom._

Nicola walked out of the dance room, and made her way down a hall. She opened a door and walked into the room. She glanced around the room and took the room in. The room was large. It had a fireplace, there were shelves on the walls, a desk with a computer, and on one of the shelves was a television. It was what was in the middle of the room that caught Nicola's eye.

_Cool, a pool table._

She closed the door, then walked to the pool table. She picked up a cue from off the wall nearby the door in which she entered, and the used the chalk at the end of the stick. She racked the balls, then broke the balls. As she was taking a shot after playing for about 20 minutes with her back to the doors she had entered from, she didn't hear the doors open and shut.

"This room is off limits," says a voice from behind her.

Nicola spins around to see Lex Luthor before.

"I'm sorry. I got lost and came across this room. When I saw this pool table, I couldn't resist."

Lex's eyes narrowed a little as he examined Nicola.

"Do I know you?" asked Lex, thinking something about her seemed familiar.

"We've ran into each other a couple of times"

Lex gave Nicola a look over one more time.

"Oh yes. You wore your hair up before."

"Yep."

"Your new hair makes you look different."

There was a short silence, before Nicola broke it.

"Well, I better get back to the party."

"How about one game before you go?"

"Are you sure? Because I'm pretty good."

"We'll just have to see about that."

Lex grabbed a cue and rubbed the chalk on the end of it as Nicola re-racks the balls.

"We're going to play solids and stripes. Do you want to break or shall I?"  
"You can."

"Big mistake there, Lexy-boy."

Nicola took her shot at the triangle of balls and broke them apart all over the table, making one striped and two solids go in different pockets. She took two more shots, sinking two more solid balls into corner pockets. She missed on her fourth shot, thus giving Lex a chance to comeback. Lex got four balls in before missing. Nicola made every single shot thereafter, winning the game.

"Now, don't you wish you went first?" grinned Nicola.

"You're quite a pool shark there" said Lex trying to get a name out of Nicola.

"Nicola."

"Well nice to meet you, Nicola," said Lex, extending his hand, which Nicola took.

"Nice to meet you too, LexWell, I better get back to the party."

Nicola turned around and was about to go back to the party, but turned to face Lex again.

"Have you seen Lana?"  
"Yeah, she's standing outside on a balcony upstairs. Just go up those stairs. Turn left, then walk through the doors at the end of the hallway."

"Thanks."

Nicola turned toward the fireplace and saw the shadow of stairs on a wall. She made her towards the shadow, turned right, then saw the staircase. She followed Lex's directions and found the balcony. Sure enough, Nicola found Lana there, with her back facing Nicola.

"Isn't a little cold to be out here?"

Lana turned around startled.

"Oh, hi Nicola. Why aren't you inside enjoying yourself?"

"I was just about to ask you them same question."

"So, do you know where Clark is?" asked Lana, changing the subject.

"I have no clue," lied Nicola. "But I'm sure he'll be here soon, or at least he'll try to. He wouldn't miss you party unless something really important came up."

"I guess."

"So, are you going to go back in, or are you going to freeze to death out here?"

"I suppose I'll go back inside. I'm sure Nell is wondering where I am."

"Good choice."

Nicola and Lana walked back inside of the manor back to the party. When they got to the stairway, Nell came up to them.

"There you are, we were looking for you to do cake, ice cream and presents," Nell informed Lana.

Lana grinned at Nicola since she predicted correctly.

"Okay, well let's go then," said Lana.

They walked down the stairs to the tables that were filled with food, gifts, and had the cake on it. Nell got the attention of the partygoers and roused a chorus of the "Birthday Song." Lana blew out the candles and made her wish. When the flames on the small birthday candles were blown out, one of the caterers started to slice the cake into small pieces while another started putting different types of ice cream on plates.

After everyone got their cake and ice cream, Nell had Lana open her presents. While Lana opened each present, Nell took track of what present was given by whom on a pad of paper. It took some time before Lana was finished opening all the presents. After she was done, it was time for dancing again.

Through-out most of the rest of the party, Nicola stayed near the refreshment table. When the party was drawing to an end, and the DJ announced the last song, which was "Cry" by Mandy Moore, Nicola felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned around to find Lex stand in front of her.

"Care to dance?" asked Lex in a suave sort of way.

"I'd love to," smiled Nicola.

Lex held out his hand, which Nicola took, and they walked to the middle of the dance floor. Nicola wrapped her arms loosely around Lex's neck while Lex placed his hands on Nicola's waist. They swayed to the slow song, and as it got further into the song, Nicola closed the gap between the two of them.

_This feels so nice._

Nicola glanced up at Lex who had a good four inches over her in height, and gazed over his features.

_He is really hot. Okay, shut up Nicola. You have really got to stop liking almost every guy you see._

Nicola closed her eyes and rested her head on Lex's chest. Soon, the song was over and Nicola pulled apart from Lex.

"Thanks for the dance," she said to Lex, but unlike when she said it to the jock, she really meant it.

"You're welcome," replied Lex.

"Well, I better get my stuff before there is mad rush. Maybe I'll see you around."

"Maybe."

Nicola turned away from Lex and walked towards the coat check. Before she got there, she found Lana standing with Nell. She said goodbye to Lana and thanked her for inviting her to the party, then finally went to the coat check. She got her denim jacket and purse, then walked out of the manor. She found the valet and gave him her ticket. Within a matter of minutes, her car came. Nicola climbed in and drove down the driveway to her house.

Ten minutes later, Nicola found herself pulling in front of her house. She put the car in park, then got out of the car. She strolled up the steps and walked into her house. Most of the lights were off. It was 12:00 AM, which meant it was time for sleep, both for humans and aliens. 

Nicola tossed the keys into the basket on the table, then walked into the bathroom. She washed her face then brushed her teeth. She looked at herself in the mirror and made the curls straighten back out to normal. She then walked downstairs to her room in the basement. She kicked off her shoes, changed out of her clothes into some pajamas, and then got under the covers of her bed. She closed her eyes, and drifted off to sleep thinking about her dance with Lex earlier that evening.

The next day, late afternoon, Nicola was coming out of her darkroom after developing some prints when she heard a knock from the basement door. She sat at her desk chair, and spun it around to face the doorway.

"Come in!" she yelled to the person behind the door.

The door opened and Nicola saw a pair of dark denim jeans walk down the stairs. As the person walked further down the stairs, Nicola could see the person was wearing a flannel shirt, and then finally saw who the person was.

"Oh, hey Clark," said Nicola, suddenly feeling uncomfortable. 

"Your mom told me you were down here. Is it okay?"

"Yeah, it's fine. So what's up?"

"I need to talk to you."

"About what?"

"Did I do something to make you mad?"

"What makes you think that?"

"You've been avoiding me since Monday afternoon."

"No I haven't."

"You practically ran in the opposite direction every time I came to talk to you."

"Mere coincidence?"

"Did I do something wrong?"

"No."

"Then what's wrong?"

"I know your secret," blurted Nicola. As soon as that sentence came out, Nicola mentally smacked herself.

_You idiot! Oh well, the cat's out of the bag._

"What?" said Clark, taking aback.

"I know your secret," repeated Nicola. "What happened 12 years ago"

"What? How?" asked Clark, wondering what he did to make her know.

"Okay, you may want to sit down for this," said Nicola, getting out of her chair to let Clark sit in.

As Clark took a seat, Nicola started to pace, taking a short pause to mentally prepare herself for what she is about to do. 

"Remember on Monday when I had that black out?"

"Yeah."

"Well, the reason is because I have powers."

Clark was about to say something, but Nicola cut him off.

"No, my powers are not from the meteorite chunks. Clark, I am about to tell you something that no one besides my family knows," began Nicola. "You know that show Roswell and the book series it is based on?"

"Yeah."

"Well, that's basically what I am. Clark, I'm an alien like the ones in the books."

"An alien? Right," laughed Clark.

"Oh, come on Clark. You know you are too. Your dad showed you your spaceship in the cellar."

"How did you know about that?"

"Clark, aliens from my planet have certain abilities, powers, if you will. One of our powers is that we can make a connection with a person and are able to see their memories. That's what happened during my blackout. I made contact with you and connected to you. During the blackout, I got flashes from most of your memories."

"You went through my memories?"

"I didn't try to, it just happened."

Clark just sat there in the seat, stunned.

"Clark, how about I connect to you to show you my memories. I haven't done it myself, but in the books they were able to."

"Are you serious?"

"Just trust me."

Nicola grabbed onto Clark's arm and gazed into his eyes. Nicola saw hers and Clark's auras wrap around each other. Clark could smell strawberries and pine trees and heard a low and a high note buzzing around. A rush of memories and feelings flowed through Clark's mind. He saw images from Nicola's mind. Clark found out all of Nicola's powers and knew all about her. Suddenly, Clark found himself back in Nicola's room.

"That was really weird," said Clark.

"Yeah. In most of my synopsizes I thought that when I revealed to someone I know I was an alien I would have shape-shifted into some celebrity or person that I knew they liked, but knowing your past brush with a shape-shifter, I figured that wouldn't have been a good idea," Nicola said as she sat down on her bed.

"Yeah, you're probably right."

There was a short pause before Clark said something else.

"So, your mom and sister are aliens too, right?"

"Yep."

"What about your step-dad and half-brother?"

"Brad's 100% human and my little brother is only half-alien."

"I only got flashes on how you got here, do you know why your parents left?"

"It's kind of complicated"

"Try me."

"Okay, well, have you read the Roswell High series?"

"Only the first one."

"Well, the ruler of the planet is basically _the consciousness._ My dad's family was in the Kindred, those who opposed _the consciousness,_ and my mom's family was apart of _the consciousness_. They met, fell in love, and decided to move to earth since their parents didn't approve of their relationship."

"Oh."

"Clark, you don't know anything about your alien past do you?"

"Nope. All I know is that I was put into a small spacecraft and sent to earth with a bunch of meteorites that destroyed the lives of most of the people I know," said Clark in sadness.

"Clark, all the stuff that has happened in Smallville is not your fault."

"Deep down, I know that, but I still feel somewhat responsible."

"You shouldn't."

"How much about other alien life does your mom know?" asked Clark, changing the subject a little.

"More than humans," joked Nicola.

"Do you think she knows about my home planet?"

"She doesn't."

"How do you know?" asked Clark, thinking his new friend my have told his secret to another person.

Nicola got up and went past Clark to take something out of her desk.

"What are you doing?"

"This is a picture of the meteorites falling to earth on October 25, 1989," Nicola told Clark as she handed him the photo.

Clark examined the photo in his hands and his eyes opened wide when they saw something in the picture.

"That's my ship," gasped Clark.

"Yeah. I showed it to my mom and asked her if she recognized it, but she didn't."

"Oh," replied Clark, his voice drenched in disappointment.

"Clark, I don't know why your real parents sent you on a one-way ticket to earth, but I'm sure they had a good reason. Maybe the planet was as bad as mine so they sent you away so you could live a better life on earth."

"Maybe. You're so lucky. I mean, my parents are great and everything, but you have two parents who can really help you understand what's going on wit you."

"Had," muttered Nicola.

"What?" asked Clark, not hearing what Nicola just said.

"I said had. I had two parents. Now I just have my mom," said Nicola sadly.

"Sorry."

"It's not your fault."

"I know, but I'm still sorry."

"Thanks," smiled Nicola meekly, then she decided to change the subject, somewhat.

"You're like indestructible, right?"

"Basically. But I've discovered recently that I do have a weakness."

"Yeah, Lana," joked Nicola.

"Ha ha," said Clark dryly.

"Kidding. So do you think Chloe's right about the meteorites?"

"Unfortunately, I know she's right. I just wish I knew why they affect me. I mean, they came with me to earth, so one must assume it came from my planet."

Nicola thought about it for a second, then came up with something.

"You wanna know my theory?"

"Sure."

"Okay, see when aliens from my race planet travel, our bodies change with each planet's atmosphere."

"So?"

"Well, see, since we have to change for each atmosphere, I'm sure certain objects from different planets change when reaching different atmosphere."

"So, what your saying is" asked Clark, hoping Nicola would get to the point soon.

"What I'm saying is that on your home planet, the rocks are harmless, but when the meteorites hit earth's atmosphere, it affected it."

"Making it so it can mutate humans and hurt people from the place it came from," finishes Clark.

"Exactly."

"What about you, do you have a weakness?"

"Yeah, I'm basically human. I can die just like a human, but aging takes a super long time. I probably outlive most the people I know, well, except maybe you."

Clark frowned, remembering the images he got from Cassandra only recently. Nicola say his aura fade in color, showing sadness, then also remembered the same images since she got them from his memories.

"Oh, I'm sorry Clark, I forgot about the Cassandra premonition thing," apologized Nicola.

"That's alright. So you know a lot of my memories now don't you?"

"Yeah, probably as many as you know mine."

There was a short moment of silence, which was broken by Clark.

"So you think I'm cute, do you?" grinned Clark, remembering the feelings and images from Nicola's point of view when they first met.

"Oh no," groaned Nicola realizing, even through the randomness of his question, what he must be talking about. "You got that memory?"

"Yeah. I also got images from the party. How was it, by the way?"

"It was okay. Lana wondered where you were."

"I was"

"Helping Pete," Nicola finished for him. "Saving the day, as always."

"How did you know?"

"Chloe came over and told me what was up."

"Oh."

"So how is Pete?"

"He's fine."

"That's good. And Jodi?"

"She's in the hospital. The doctor's can't figure out what's wrong with her."

"I doubt they ever will, but I hope she does get better. So, Did you give Lana your present?" asked Nicola, changing the subject. "What was it by the way?"

"Yeah I gave Lana her present. It was a drive-in movie."

"That's so sweet."

Clark grinned, and was close to blushing.

"This is so weird. I always imagined when I told the truth about me to someone that'd they'd run screaming."

"Like you sort of did with me?"

"I didn't run screaming. I walked really fast, silently."

Clark chuckled at Nicola's comment.

"It feels good," said Clark.

"What?"

"Having someone who understands what I'm going through."

"Yeah, I know what you mean. Sure, I had my family there for me, but it's not the same, you know?"

"Exactly."

There was a short pause before Clark spoke again.

"So where do we go from here?"

"No clue. We could have a little fun with my powers."

"Isn't that a little irresponsible?"

"Oh my God, you sound like my mom and Brad. Come on Clark, you've got to learn to live a little. Give me a place you've always wanted to go."

"Rome?"

"Done."

Nicola grabs Clark's arm and sends him and herself to Rome. When they got to Rome they discovered it was nighttime. In front of them was the Coliseum.

"Wow, this is amazing."

"Yeah. I've been here a few times before."

"It must be cool to be able to move from place to place in practically a blink of an eye."

"I guess, but it'd be cooler if I could fly."

"Yeah, I suppose."

"What time does your watch say?"

"5:47."

"Okay, that means it's almost 2 AM here or so, I think, so everything is closed."

"That's all rightSo when you transport from place to place, aren't you afraid someone will see you reappear?"

"I tend to only go to places when it's at least one in the morning, that way if anyone sees me they're probably too wasted to realize that I'm real. Then during my first visit, I find a safe place I can transport so I can go to places during the day."

"Cool."

"So, you ready to go back?"

"Sure."

Nicola grabbed Clark's arm and the orbed back to Nicola's room.

"How do you that?" asked Clark.

"Orb?"

"Yeah."

"Well, I just kinda of concentrate on our molecules then send them to a location."

"Interesting. Where else have you orbed to?"

" I've been to Paris, Italy, Tokyo, and lots of other places."

"That's so awesome."

"Yeah."

"What's your favorite power?"

"Probably my ability to restructure molecules. What's yours? And please don't tell me it's the x-ray vision," joked Nicola, remembering one of the memories she got from Clark when he first discovered his x-ray powers.

"Well, one time I woke and I was levitating over my bed."

"Yeah for a millisecond before you fell."

"Okay, don't ruin my favorite power."

"Sorry. But hey, think of it this way; the power will eventually develop. Maybe you'll fly one day."

"Yeah, right. I'd like to see that."

"Oh come on, think about. One day everyone will be like: Look in the sky!" said Nicola pointing up. "It's a bird! No, it's a plane! No, it's Clark Kent!"

Clark chuckled and shook his head in dismay.

"Well, I better get home, my mom told me to be back soon for dinner," said Clark.

"Alright," replied Nicola. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow morning. You can use that door over there."

"Okay. Bye."

Clark turned around and walked towards the door.

"Hey, Clark," said Nicola, making Clark turn back around. "How long does it take you to get from your house to mine?"

"I dunno, about 20 seconds. Why?"

"Just curious."

"Alright, well c-ya."

"Bye."

With that, Clark turned around and left for his house. After Nicola saw the door shut, she walked upstairs to see if there was any dinner and, sure enough, she found her mom in the kitchen, cooking something.

"So, what did Clark want?" asked Juliet.

"Oh, he just wanted to know about the party last night," lied Nicola.

"Really? And he just couldn't have call because"

"Because I never gave him my number."

"Of course," replied Juliet, sounding half-sarcastic.

Nicola semi-glared at her mom then moved on to the subject of food.

"So, what are you cooking?"

"Dinner."

"I kind of figured that much, but what is it?"  
"Well this is going to be stuffing in a few minutes and there are mashed potatoes and chicken in the oven."

"Sounds good. When will it be done?"

"In a few minutes. Why don't you get your brother and sister and have them get washed up for dinner."

"Okay."

Nicola left the kitchen and walked around the house in search for her siblings. She found them in Joey's room playing with Joey's little race cars.

"Guys, mom wants you two to get ready for dinner," Nicola informed the two little kids.

"What are we having?" asked Lindsay.

"Food. Come on, just go to the bathroom and wash up. I'll help Joey."

"Okay," said Lindsay.

Lindsay walked to the bathroom to wash her hands as Nicola helped Joey stand up. She took Joey's hand and walked to the bathroom with him.

After Joey, Lindsay, and Nicola were finished getting ready for dinner, the three siblings walked downstairs to the kitchen to find Juliet and Brad waiting for them. Nicola put Joey in his booster seat before sitting down in another chair.

After the family finished eating dinner, Nicola went back downstairs and took a couple of prints out of the wash to hang. Knowing that she had a lot of time to kill before it was time to sleep, she decided to surf via her newly installed DSL connection.

Hours passed and Nicola started to feel sleepy, so she shut down her computer and changed into her pajamas. She drifted off to sleep with thoughts of what had happened during her first week. She finally had someone she could confide in about her alien side.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

TBC soon, hopefully. Please review people. You can even tell me how much it sucked and all the characters were out of character if you want, I don't care, I just want to know whether I'm doing a good job or if I'm disgracing Smallville by attempting to write a fanfic about it. I'm sorry if it seems to go slow, but I can't help it, I like to write with a lot of detail. 

Note: I am not going to pair up Nicola and Clark. I may pair up Nicola and Lex, haven't decided yet. What do you think?

Anyway, I hoped you all enjoyed the chapter.


	4. The Field Trip Gone Wrong

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Rating: PG-13 due to mild cussing.

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Disclaimer: Still don't own Smallville.

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Author's notes: Sorry it took me so long to write another chapter, I've been pretty damn busy. Hopefully I'll be able to write my chapters quicker so I can post them more often. 

I wasn't sure whether this chapter should be a part of the story or should be in a sequel since, well the story is called "Welcome to Smallville" and the first three chapters deal with her more being established as a new character. Does this make any sense to you, or do I sound weird? Anyway, tell me what you think in your review. 

As you might have been able to guess from the chapter title, this chapter takes place simultaneously with "Jitters." Don't worry, I only have little bits of the episode in this chapter. I decided to tamper with what happened in the episode a tad, and involved my character in some scenes instead of working around them. I used Television Without Pity's episode guide to help me write some of the stuff that was in the episode. Oh, and I guessed on some of the dialogue and action, so don't be mad if it is a little off.

I'm sorry if this chapter is crappy, and if you agree with me, go ahead and tell me so in your review, except please have constructive criticism, not deconstructive. I'd really appreciate it, thanks.

Thanks to everyone who reviewed, I really appreciate the feedback.

Please Review, it will make me more motivated to write faster.

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It was 7:26 when Nicola walked up the steps of Clark's porch with a small case in her hand and then knocked on the front door. Since Clark's parents were in Metropolis for a couple days, Clark was having a party in about a half an hour and he had asked Nicola to help him set up the party. Within seconds, the front door opens, revealing Clark.

"Hey, thanks again for the help," Clark said as Nicola walked into the house.

"No problem," replied Nicola. 

"Are those the CDs?"

"Yep. I have all types of CDs and mixes that will please all your music-loving tastes."  
"Great."

"So how many people do you think will show up?"  
"I dunno. I told Pete, Chloe, and Lana to come."

"You didn't mention it to anyone else, did you?"

"I told Lex and I did let it slip to a few people that my parents were out of town," admitted Clark.

"Well, you just invited the whole town to your house tonight."

"Probably."

"You better hope your parents don't find out."  
"I know," replied Clark with a worried look on his face.

"So, what do you want me to do?" 

"Ummcould you go to the kitchen and put the chips in the bowls that I have out?"

"Sure."

Nicola walked to the kitchen as Clark moved some furniture around so there would be room for dancing or something. When he was done, Nicola walked back into the living room with two bowls of chips.

"You want me to put this on the table?" she asked him.

"Yeah, that'd be great."

Nicola set the chips on the dining room-turned refreshment table before asking Clark what else he'd like her to do.

"Ummcould you get some cups from the pantry and set them on the refreshment table?"

"Okay."

And with that, Nicola went back into the kitchen, leaving Clark to make the house look presentable. After 20 minutes, Clark and Nicola, and they sat on the couch.

"Hey, did you lock the door of the faulty bathroom upstairs?" Nicola asked Clark.

"No, why would I?"

"Because people are going to try to us it and probably ruin it."

"Why would they go upstairs?"

"Oh Clark, my young, naïve friend. They go upstairs looking for a make-out room."

"I'll just put a sign on the door."  
"Alright. Oh, and you might want to put away the valuables and the breakables."

"Good idea."

Clark stood up the zipped around the house in a flash, putting away anything that if were broken would result in his untimely death, before sitting on the couch again. Nicola glanced at her watch.

"It's about 10 minutes before people start arriving. How about I put on some music?" suggested Nicola.

"Okay."

Nicola stood up and walked to her CD case that was next to the stereo and inserted a mix CD. Some dance mix started to play and Nicola sat back down next to Clark.

"Now what?" asked Clark.

"Now we wait for the masses to arrive."

One hour later

The party was in full swing. Unfortunately for Clark, the word of a party spread like a wild fire around Smallville High School and practically the whole school was at the Kent farm. The Kent household was in pure chaos. Nicola weaved her way around the dancing party-goers to find Chloe or Pete, but instead found Clark next to some Asian dude who looked like he was about to throw up. A flash whizzed past Nicola then went back to the Asian guy and all of sudden Clark had a bowl that Nicola had put chips in earlier that night. Nicola looked away as the Asian guy threw up into the once-snack bowl, then continued her walk to Clark.

"Hey have you seen Chloe or Pete?" Nicola yelled to him over the music.

"Yeah, they're somewhere around here."

"Oh, that's helpful," Nicola replied sarcastically.

"Sorry."

"It's alright. Well, I guess I continue my search."

"Okay."

Nicola turned and left Clark. She walks around the house in search for Chloe and Pete for about 15, but unfortunately she didn't find them. She gave up then walked to the couch, which was vacant for the first time since the party started, then plopped down on it. After a couple minutes of resting, some guy who was in Nicola's English class came up to her and asked her if she was a dance. Reluctantly, Nicola said yes and stood up to dance with the guy. When the song was over, Nicola left the classmate to go outside to see if maybe Pete and Chloe were out there.

As Nicola walked out of the house, Lana was about to walk in.

"Oh hey Lana," Nicola said to her.

"Hey Nicola," replied Lana. "Seen Clark?"

"Yeah, he's inside at the refreshment table," replied Nicola.

"Alright thanks," smiled Lana.

"No problem."

As Lana walked in the house, Nicola walked to the top step of the stairs and glanced down at the crowd who was hanging outside since they couldn't fit inside the house. She soon spotted Chloe and Pete standing around talking, and she ran down the steps to meet them.

"Hey guys," Nicola said to them as she got up to them.

"Oh, hey Nicola," replied Chloe.

"Hi Nicola," smiled Pete. "How long have you been here?"

"About an hour and a half," replied Nicola. "I helped Clark set up. So, you two enjoying yourselves?"

"Yeah. I went inside earlier. It sure is crowded," commented Chloe.

"Oh, I know. Obviously the word got out about this unsupervised party," replied Nicola.

Suddenly, fireworks started going off, and people from inside came out to watch.

"Wow, where did Clark get the fireworks from?" asked Pete.

"No clue," replied Nicola. "For some reason, I don't think it was him."

Soon, Clark came out the front door and joined the small group.

"Clark-Man, how cool is this?" said Pete.

"Man, the cops are going to be alerted to the party," complained Clark.

"Hey, I didn't bring the fireworks."

"I did," said a voice from behind them.

The four teens turn around to find Lex Luthor standing before them in a sleek, black attire that was a little more casual then his regular look.

"It's a party gift," Lex informed them. "Hope you like it."

"Thanks," said Clark.

"Oh, and don't worry about the cops, it's covered."

As they turned to watch the fireworks some more, Lex continued to talk.

"A party can make or break a reputation. I wanted to make sure yours was a success," he told Clark.

There is a silence before Lex speaks yet again.

"So Chloe, I hear that you and your class are taking a tour of Luthor Corps tomorrow."

"It's just a class field trip," Chloe exposits.

"Now what did you guys do wrong to deserve that?" jokes Lex.

Before anyone could comment, a skanky Asian chick creeps next to Lex. As the Asian lady placed her arm behind Lex, a Nicola felt a pang of jealousy, but chose to ignore it.

"Sorry I took so long; someone overflowed the bathroom," said the Asian lady.

"I'm officially dead," groaned Clark.

Nicola gave Clark a sympathetic look and they decide to enjoy the fireworks a little longer before going inside to deal with the situation at hand.

After the fireworks display was over, Lex and his date left, and Clark walked back inside the house to attempt to fix the bathroom or at least make sure it didn't get ruined any further. Chloe, Pete, and Nicola also walk into the house and try to enjoy the party from the inside. After a while, Nicola sees Clark watching Lana, who is sitting on the couch, as Whitney walks into the house and up to Lana.

Even from where Nicola was standing, she could tell that the couple was having a small squabble, and watched them as they walked out of the house. Nicola saw Clark glower, so she walked up to him.

"What was that about?" Nicola asked him.

"You mean the Lana/Whitney thing?" he asked.

"Yeah."

"No clue."

"Well, it looks like there's trouble in paradise."

Clark just shrugged then left to the refreshment table.

Nicola sighed then went back outside to the porch to sit on one of the chairs that were out there. After sitting in the chair for several minutes, she saw Lana run out of the barn and up the porch steps.

"Where's Clark?" asked Lana, who sounded semi-panicky.

"What's wrong?"

"There's something in the barn."

"He's probably at the refreshment table," Nicola informed Lana.

"Thanks."

Lana ran into the house and soon Clark and Lana came back out. Nicola decided to follow them into the barn, even though she knew Clark could handle whatever was in it. When she got into the barn she saw Whitney up in the loft with a pitchfork looking very terrified.

"Kent! Get up here!"

Nicola watched Clark climb up the ladder then as he got up on the loft he turned on the flashlight he happened to have with him.

"It's over there," said Whitney pointing to a corner in the wall.

Nicola climbed up the ladder to see what was going down. When she got up there, she saw something in the corner, covered by the canvas. Clark and Whitney slowly walk up to it and Whitney pokes at it, causing the canvas flies off, revealing an African-American man who looked freaked out.

Whitney appeared to get ready to swing at the guy when Clark says, "I know the guy."

Whitney backs up.

"What are you doing here Earl?"

"I came to see your dad," he replied. "He's the only one I can trust."  
"He's out of town," Clark informs him.

Suddenly, Earl starts convulsing.

"What's wrong with you?" asked Clark.

Clark puts his hand on Earl's knee, but it turns green and Clark pulls his hand away in pain.

Earl starts to convulse again, this time harder.

"Call an ambulance!" Clark shouted.

Nicola turned around and climbed down the ladder. She then proceeded to run inside the house, grabbed her cell phone, and then ran back outside the house so she could dial 911.

An ambulance came in 15 minutes and strapped Earl on the gurney to transport him to the Smallville hospital. Clark had informed Pete what was going on and asked him to man the house while he, Nicola, and Chloe went to the hospital. And then he, Chloe, and Nicola got into Nicola's car and drove to the hospital.

They pulled up to the hospital parking lot and got out of the car. As they walked to the hospital's emergency doors, Chloe watched as Nicola and Clark walked side by side close together and talked in a hushed whisper. She glowered, feeling left out, wondering what the hell they were talking about and if she could possibly move closer to them to overhear, without looking obvious.

"No Clark, I can't heal him," Nicola whispered to Clark.

"Why not? He's a good person," insisted Clark.

"First of all, I'm not God, I can't just heal people at the tip of a hat. And second, you think he's infected by the meteorite. If that's the truth then I don't know what effect the stuff could have on me when I connect to him to heal him."

"I guess you're right," sighed Clark. "I just wish I knew how to help him."

"I know," said Nicola, putting her hand on Clark's shoulder.

Soon, the three teens walked through the emergency doors and then Clark walked up to the front desk to ask if the ambulance with Earl had shown up yet.

"So, what were you talking with Clark about in the car?" Chloe asked Nicola, trying to be casual.

"Nothing important," lied Nicola. "Clark just asked me if I could drive a little faster."

"Oh, okay," replied Chloe, knowing something must be up.

Soon Clark walked back up to them.

"Okay, the nurse told me that they took Earl to one of the rooms and the doctors are checking on us now," Clark informed them. "Why don't we go sit in the waiting till we get further information?"

"Alright," agreed Nicola and Chloe.

As they walked further into waiting room, a rush of memories of one of the last times Nicola had to wait in the waiting room for news on a patient: when her dad died. Quickly, Nicola started to almost hyperventilate.

Chloe noticed this and asked Nicola if she was all right.

"Yeah, I'm fine. It's just I haven't ever been a big fan of hospitals," replied Nicola. She walked further into the waiting room when the emotions came with the memories. "You know what, I think I'll take a breather outside for a minute. I'll be back in a few."

"Okay," said Chloe.

"Sure, I totally understand," said Clark, sympathetically smiling at Nicola.

"Thanks," Nicola smiled back at Clark before turning her heal and walking out of the hospital.

"I wonder what that was about," pondered Chloe outloud.

"She's hated hospitals ever since her dad died in one," Clark replied.

"Oh."

She gazed at her friend, surprised at how close Clark and Nicola have gotten in the last week.

Clark sat down in a chair in the waiting room while Chloe grabbed herself a Pepsi then walked towards Clark. She then started talking about the reason they were at the hospital in the first place (Earl.)

Meanwhile, outside Smallville Medical Center, Nicola walked back down the parking lot and got into her car. She placed her hands on the steering wheel and her head on her hands, trying to block the memories of the fateful day her father died. She remembered it as if it was yesterday:

It was Saturday, April 15, 1995. The day had been bright and warm and 10 year-old Nicola had a soccer game at 3:30 that afternoon. Nicola's dad had promised her that after his meeting at 2:45, he would come straight to the game. By the last 5 minutes of the game, there was no sign of her dad. She had scored the winning goal, but instead of being happy about the victory, she was mad at her dad.

After the game, she ran to her mom in near-tears.

"Where's daddy?" Nicola asked her mom, Juliet.

"I dunno honey, but I'm sure he really wanted to come here," Juliet comforted her daughter.

In the car ride home, Nicola had been ranting about how she couldn't believe her dad missed the game, again, after he had promised this time. She had decided that once she got home and saw her dad, she would give him the silent treatment.

'That would show him,' Nicola thought to herself.

Soon they pulled up to their home in the outskirts of Metropolis. In one arm Juliet held Nicola's little sister Lindsay, and with the other hand, she held Nicola's hand. They walked into the house, and Nicola ran to the TV to watch whatever cartoon she could find on, while Juliet grabbed the telephone, then brought Lindsay to the TV room and sat her next to Nicola. Juliet dialed the answering machine service. The cartoon on TV was boring to Nicola, so she decided to watched her mom.

Nicola saw her mom's face change to a horrified expression and watched the phone slip out of Juliet's hand. Nicola used her telekinetic powers, which she had recently developed, and stopped the phone before it hit the ground. For a millisecond Nicola was proud of herself, before she remembered her mother's expression.

"What's wrong Mommy?" Nicola asked.

"We have to take a little drive to the hospital," Juliet said to her, trying not to scare the young girl.

"Why?"

Nicola watched as a tear escaped from the corner of her mom's eye, rolled down the cheek, then fall off her chin. Nicola instantly knew something was wrong.

"Your daddy was in an accident," was all Juliet said to her.

Juliet picked Lindsay up again and started walking to the front door again with Nicola in tow. She placed Lindsay on the ground and Nicola helped Lindsay stay standing up. As Juliet locked the door, Nicola saw her hands shake.

"Are you sure in good enough condition to drive?" Nicola asked her mom. "I could ask Mrs. Johnson to drive us."

Juliet glanced down at her daughter, and a small smile spread across her saddened face.

"That's a good idea honey," said Juliet. "Why don't you go ask her now?"

"Okay," replied Nicola, before she ran off down the porch steps to the neighbor's front door and knocked with urgency. Within seconds, the door opened, revealing a lady in her late 40's.

"What's the emergency, Nicola?" Mrs. Johnson asked.

"My dad's in the hospital, and I don't think my mom is in the best shape to drive," Nicola informed her neighbor.

A look of concern washed over Mrs. Johnson's face.

"Okay honey, let me just grabbed my keys and tell Andrew where I am going."

"Okay," said Nicola in a small voice.

Mrs. Johnson disappeared in her house, then reappeared in less than a minute.

"Okay, let's go," said Mrs. Johnson.

She took Nicola's hand and they walked next door Nicola's family's driveway where Juliet and Lindsay were waiting.

"Ready for that ride?" Mrs. Johnson asked Juliet.

Juliet nodded her head in a yes, then she, Mrs. Johnson, Nicola, and Lindsay headed for Mrs. Johnson's car.

The car ride to Metropolis University Hospital was silent, each person in the car was thinking over the situation, with the exception of Lindsay who was too young to understand what was going on. They soon arrived at the hospital and the group of four rushed into the emergency wing of the hospital.

Juliet walked up to the reception desk.

"My name is Juliet Lively, I got a call that my husband, Romeo Lively, was rushed to this hospital," Juliet told the receptionist/nurse, trying to stay composed. "Can you tell me which room he is in?"

Juliet watched as the nurse looked through the computer database and saw the nurse frown.

"I'm sorry Mrs. Lively, there's no easy way to say this," started the nurse. "But your husband died a half an hour ago."

"What?" near-screamed Juliet, tears pouring from her eyes.

Mrs. Johnson pulled Juliet in for a hug to try to calm her down, while Nicola herself was almost in hysterics.

"I'll get one of the doctors," the nurse told Mrs. Johnson, before heading off.

'My daddy's dead?' Nicola thought sadly to herself.

Soon a doctor came to Juliet and Mrs. Johnson, and the sobbing Juliet pulled away from Mrs. Johnson.

"Hello, I'm Dr. Robertson, I tried to save Mr. Lively when he came in earlier this afternoon," the doctor said to him.

"How did he die?" Juliet asked Dr. Robertson.

"Car accident," replied the doctor. "It appears he was in a hurry before a semi jack-knifed of the road, and your husband was going too fast to stop from hitting it.

"Where's his body?" Juliet asked.

"I'm sure you don't want to see it," Dr. Robertson told Juliet. "It's in pretty bad condition.

"Where is his body?" Juliet asked again raising her voice this time.

"Follow me," said Dr. Robertson. "You'll definitely want to leave your children in the waiting room."

"I'll watch them," Mrs. Johnson told Juliet.

"Thank you," Juliet said to Mrs. Johnson before following the doctor down one of the hospital's hallway.

"Come on, Nicola let's sit over there," said Mrs. Johnson, pointing to some empty seats.

Mrs. Johnson picked up Lindsay then walked over to the empty seats with Nicola walking slowly behind them.

"It's my fault," Nicola said to herself softly as she sat down, but loud enough for Mrs. Johnson to hear her.

"Oh, honey, it's not your fault," Mrs. Johnson said to the young girl.

"Yes it is," cried Nicola. "He was in a hurry because of me. If he had just been going slower, he would be alive."

"No that's not true," said Mrs. Johnson. "Yes, your dad might have been driving a little faster to make it to your game, but what happened is not your fault."

"And I was mad at him. While he was dying, I was thinking of how angry I was for not showing up."

"Your dad knew you loved him, and he loved you, your sister, and your mom so much," comforted Mrs. Johnson.

"I know," sniffled Nicola, but still thinking the accident was all her fault.

Back in the present: Tears streamed down Nicola's face as she sat in the car, remembering that fateful day. She still blamed herself a little for the accident.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the passenger side of the car, causing Nicola to nearly jump out her skin and stop thinking through her memories. She glanced out the passenger window and saw Clark's face looking at her. She pushed the automatic button, unlocking the door. As Clark opened the passenger door, Nicola wiped the tears off her face, trying to recompose herself.

"You and Chloe ready to go?" Nicola asked Clark.

"Well, I'm going to stay tonight to keep on eye on Earl," Clark informed her.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah."

Clark looked at Nicola and saw her reddened eyes. He could tell she had been crying.

"Are you okay?" Clark asked Nicola, his voice oozing with concern.

"Yeah, I'm fine," lied Nicola, not wanting put another burden on Clark's shoulders tonight. "I just hate hospitals."

"Alright, if you say so," replied Clark, knowing that Nicola was lying to him, but he didn't want to press her at that moment. "Can you pick me up tomorrow morning?"

"Sure no problem. I guess I can pick you up before I go to work."

"Work?" Clark looked at Nicola questionably.

"Yeah, I start work at the Beanery tomorrow at 10."

"Really? You don't seem like the waitress type."

"I'm not. Trust me, I'd rather be shelving books at a bookstore, but a job's a job."

"I guess.

"Okay, hasta mañana then." 

"Yeah, until tomorrow," replied Clark, grinning because of Nicola's Spanish farewell.

Clark backed up from the car, and then Chloe climbed in. Clark waved goodbye to Chloe and Nicola before turning and hustling into the hospital.

Nicola started the car, and put the car in drive. She turned the radio off, then drove out of the hospital's parking lot.

"So, how's Earl doing?" Nicola asked Chloe.

"About the same as he was at Clark's."

"Oh. Do the doctors have any idea what's wrong with him?"

"They haven't got the slightest clue. One thing we did find out is that he is wanted for the murder of some janitor at LuthorCorps."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Interesting."

The rest of the drive to the Chloe's house was silent.

"Thanks for the ride," said Chloe as she opened the door to get out.

"No problem," replied Nicola.

Chloe closed the door then walked up her front steps into her house. Nicola put the car back into drive then headed home.

The next day:

Nicola arrived at hospital around 8:30 AM. She took a deep breath, then walked into the hospital. She went to the waiting room to find Clark slumped in a chair, fast asleep. Nicola grinned at the sight, then started to shake Clark.

"Hey, sleeping beauty, wake up."

Clark's head slowly went up, and one eye poked open.

"Oh, hey Nicola," yawned Clark.

"Morning Clark. Ready to go?"

"Yeah."

Clark stood up from chair and stretched out yet.

"That doesn't look like it was comfortable."

"It wasn't."

"Well, let's get moving to your house. You better hope that the house wasn't totally trashed in your absence."

"Well, Pete said he'd try to maintain control while we were at the hospital."

"Now, try was the key word there. It's probably going to be one hell of a clean up."

"Probably," groaned Clark. "Thank God my parents aren't coming home till tomorrow."

"Oh yeah," agreed Nicola. "I can stay for a little while to help clean up, maybe put together a few broken things with my powers." 

"Thanks," smiled Clark.

"No problem."

Soon they got to Nicola's family's car and she unlocked the car doors. Clark and Nicola climbed into the car, then Nicola started the car and headed for Clark's house.

"So, are you going to tell me the truth now about last night?" Clark asked Nicola, referring to when he came to the car to tell Nicola he was staying the hospital that night. 

"What are you talking about?" Nicola asked Clark, pretending to have no idea about what he could possibly be talking about.

"Come on Nicola, you know what I'm talking about. "I know something was wrong."

"I'm fine," sighed Nicola. "It's just that the hospital brought back memories of my dad's death."  
"Oh, that's what I thought," frowned Clark. "I'm sorry I brought you to the hospital. I should have known the hospital might bring back bad memories."

"It's not your fault Clark. I volunteered to take you and Chloe to the hospital, remember?"

"Yeah, but I still feel somewhat responsible."

"I know, you always do. Clark, you've got to learn that not everything that happens is your fault. You can't prevent all bad stuff from happening."

"I know," Clark sighed heavily.

There was a silence before Clark spoke again, changing the subject.

"So, you excited about the field trip this afternoon?"

"Oh yeah, I can't wait to tour a fertilizer company," said Nicola sarcastically.

Soon, they pulled up the driveway of Clark's house and Nicola stopped the car in front of his house.

"Well, let's go inside and survey the damage," said Clark, opening the car door.

Nicola opened her door, and then she and Clark walked up the front porch to the front door. Clark took out his keys and unlocked the door. As he and Nicola walked into the house, they took in the damage. The house was severely trashed.

They walked into the kitchen, and Clark sat at the counter. He propped his elbow on the counter, only to place it in some dip.

"Yuck," said Nicola, as she watched Clark remove his elbow from the bowl.

Clark looked up at Nicola.

"You take upstairs, I get down?" suggested Clark.

"Alright. Why don't you put all broken items in a pile in the kitchen, and I'll fix them when I am done with upstairs?"

"Okay."

With that, Nicola orbed upstairs while Clark started to superspeed around the downstairs' rooms. A couple minutes later, Clark supercleaned the whole downstairs floor and sets down his broom, only to hear a golf clap behind him. He turns around to expect to see Nicola, but instead it was his parents. While Clark got a lecture before he changed the subject to Earl, Nicola was upstairs using her alien powers to clean the mess that was left upstairs.

Right as Clark was finishing informing his parents on the matter, Nicola walked down the stairs.

"I fixed the toilet upstairs," Nicola said as she walked into the room, unknowing of Clark's parents' presence. "Oh, hello Mr. & Mrs. Kent."

"Hello Nicola," smiled Martha Kent.

"You fixed the toilet?" asked Jonathan Kent.

"Yeah," replied Nicola. 

"It kinda got broken worse last night," admitted Clark.

Jonathan frowned at his son, before smiling at Nicola.

"Well thank you for fixing the problem."

"It was no trouble," said Nicola. She turned to Clark. "I'm going to do that one thing in the kitchen, and then I'm off to work."  
"Okay," replied Clark.

With that, Nicola turned to go to the kitchen, hoping that Clark would distract his parents while she fixed all the broken plates and whatnot.

"What is she talking about?" asked a curious Martha.

"Oh, she's, um, just putting away some dishes," lied Clark.

"Clark, I can't believe you are making your friend do that. Let me go help her," said Martha before turning to attempt to go to the kitchen.

"No mom!" Clark practically yelled, making Martha turn and look at her son suspiciously. "I already tried, but she insisted that she do it herself."

"Oh, okay. I guess I'll just go upstairs to survey the damage then."

"I'll come with you," said Jonathan.

When his parents disappeared up the stairs, Clark walked into the kitchen to find Nicola finishing putting back together the last broken item.

"Thanks for fixing everything."

"You're welcome," smiled Nicola. "Well, I better get to work. I don't want to be late on the first day."

"Alright. See you this afternoon."  
"Yeah. See ya."  
Nicola walked out the back door then got into her car to drive to work.

That afternoon:

Nicola walked off the bus behind Clark, Chloe, and Pete and into the LuthorCorps Fertilizer Plant building to be greeted by Chloe's dad.

"Hello sweetheart!" Mr. Sullivan said to Chloe.

Chloe groaned and tried to hide behind Clark.

"Welcome to LuthorCorp, where we give a crap," Mr. Sullivan said to the group.

The introduction earned snickers from the peanut gallery.

"Okay, somebody kill me now," Chloe groaned to Clark, Nicola, and Pete.

"Please remove cell phones, jewelry, or anything else that jangles, dangles, or rings."

While the group removed their things, Mr. Sullivan asked if there were any questions. Nicola watched as Clark raised his hand.

"I heard there's a third level to the plant," says Clark.

"Yeah, yeah," replied Mr. Sullivan. "That's where we do the alien autopsies."

People laugh while Clark and Nicola shift uncomfortable at the phrase 'alien autopsies.'

Everyone started to move as Chloe moaned to Clark, "Don't encourage him."

As they walk down the hallway, Nicola pulled Clark slightly behind everyone else.

"What's this about a third level?" Nicola asked Clark.

Clark explained to Nicola what he learned this morning when he visited Earl with his dad; the whole experiments in Level three and the jitters.

"Do you believe him?"

"I don't know," replied Clark. "But I'm going to find out. Cover for me?"

"Yeah, fine," sighed Nicola.

They look at the rest of the group and see Chloe's dad pointing out hot pipes.

"Go now," Nicola said to Clark.

With that, Clark superspeeds to a door that's labeled 'Authorized Personnel Only' that is swinging shut, and holds it open for himself before it closes all the way.

After Clark disappeared, Nicola hustled up to the front of the group where Chloe and Pete were.

"Where's Clark?" Chloe asked Nicola, noticing that Clark wasn't with her.

"He said something about finding a bathroom," lied Nicola.

"Oh," replied Chloe. "Well let's hope he doesn't get lost."

Soon the group arrives to a control room.

"This is it. Mission control!" announces Chloe's dad. "We process lots of crap, and the results can be explosive. So, if any of you had beans for lunch, I'm going to have to ask you to leave," he joked.

There were a few chuckles from the group. And Chloe had a look of total mortification on her face.

"Among his peers, he's considered witty," she explains to Nicola and Pete.

Suddenly, there is a rattling at the door. As Mr. Sullivan was going to open the door it bursts open to reveal Earl. He swings Mr. Sullivan around and pointed a gun to his head as all the students back up.

"You take me to Level 3," Nicola heard Earl whisper to Mr. Sullivan.

"Dad!" Chloe cried out.

"Now!" yelled Earl.

Panic spread through out the control room, and one of the workers hit a button that may have signaled to the guards there was a problem.

"There is no Level 3," insisted Mr. Sullivan.

Earl looked around the room at the group of teens and told them to sit along the wall, which everyone did.

"I know there is a Level 3, take me to it now!" yelled Earl.

"I know nothing about Level 3."

"Stop lying!"

Just then, Clark walks into the room holding a bunch of paper tubes, causing Nicola, Chloe, and Pete to raise an eyebrow.

"I found these blueprints," Clark informed Earl. "There is no Level 3."

Earl grabs the rolled up papers from Clark then rolls them out on a table. Earl pointed his gun at the plans.

Earl explained that he used to walk down the long Level 2 hallway, along the red pipes, then took the elevator down to Level three. By the end of his explanation, he's yelling, freaking many of the teens out.

"You're just like everybody else!" Earl tells Clark. "Now sit down with the rest of them."

Clark backed away from Earl, then sat down next to Lana and Whitney.

The phone rings, and Mr. Sullivan answers the phone.

"It's Lionel Luthor, he want's to talk to you," Mr. Sullivan told Earl.

"Put on the speaker phone," Earl said, which Mr. Sullivan did. "Finally got your attention?" Earl asked Mr. Luthor

"Why don't you come out? We've got a lot to talk about," Mr. Luthor replied.

As Earl asked Mr. Luthor a question about what they were using on Level 3, Nicola glanced at Clark to try to communicate with him, but he was too busy worrying. All of sudden, Earl started to shake again and then grabbed onto a big valve. As Clark went to Earl to help, the valve flew off, hitting Clark, causing him to fall back.

Earl looks at the tank then went up to the surveillance camera. "See what you made me do?" He yelled into the camera.

As Earl talks into the surveillance camera, Nicola sees this as her opportunity to move where Clark is.

"We have to do something," Nicola heard Whitney say to Clark and Lana.

"Oh yeah, let's get the guy with gun more pissed than he already his. Smart," said Nicola sarcastically, causing a glare from Whitney. "Leave the heroics to the professionals, Fordman."

"It's not a good idea," agreed Clark.

"Two of us can take him. How about it, Clark?" said Whitney.

Clark thinks it over, but then remembers he can't get near Earl without going weak.

"I can't," sighed Clark.

"It's okay," Lana assured Clark.

Whitney decided to be dumb ass and sneak up on Earl, but Earl turned around and saw Whitney. Whitney knocked the gun out of Earl's hands, but Earl smacks Whitney in the face. Earl grabbed the gun, then walked up to the camera as if nothing happened. Except now, like Nicola predicted, he's really pissed and he shoots at the camera.

The methane pressure was rising, and the group can smell the methane getting thicker. A couple of minutes later, Lex walked into the room in a bulletproof vest.

"Mr. Luthor sent his son to do his dirty work, I see," said Earl 

"This is my plant. I'm here on my own," said Lex. "Is Whitney okay?" Lex asked Lana, Clark, and Nicola. The three teens nod in a yes.

"What are we going to do about these kids?" Lex asked Earl.

"I didn't mean to hurt them," replied Earl. "I tried to talk to your father, but he wouldn't listen."

"I know the feeling," replied Lex gravely.

Lex started to take off his vest.

"What is he doing?" Nicola whispered to Clark.

Clark just shrugged in a response.

"I'm going to tell you the truth," Lex said to Earl. "My father doesn't care about you or anybody else. If a shooting spree goes down, he'll spin it to the media, insurance will pay up, and you will go down as the bad."

"I'm not the bad guy. I'm just trying to get better."

"How will you get better by shooting a bunch of kids?"

There is no response from Earl.

"I'll take you to Level 3," Lex said to Earl.

Earl took the gun out and pointed it at Lex.

"Stop lying!" Earl yelled again.

"I'm not. I'm a man of my word."

Earl thinks about it for a second, then yells at the group to get out. The group of teens and adults run out of the room, with Clark and Nicola hanging back a little. As Lex undid his tie, Clark and Nicola walked up to him while Earl is away for a moment.

"Do you really know where Level 3 is?" Clark asked Lex.

"Yeah," replied Lex. "In his imagination."

This caused an exchange of glances between Nicola and Clark, then they walked out of the room. Clark and Nicola find themselves a little behind the rest of the teens.

"I'm going to stay," Clark tells Nicola as they near the closing steel door.

"Then I'm staying too," Nicola replies.

"No, you've got to go, it's not safe," insists Clark.

"I can take care of myself."

"Fine," sighed Clark.

"Now," said Nicola.

Clark and Nicola turned around to hear Pete yelling after them. They roll underneath the door before closed all the way.

"What now?" asked Nicola.

"Let's check that entrance to the elevator?" suggested Clark.

"Okay."

With that, Clark supersped along Level 3 while Nicola orbed to the destination. They find themselves at a small room.

"Doesn't look like there's an elevator here."

Clark stared at the wall and used his x-ray vision to see an elevator beyond the wall.

"There's an elevator behind the wall."

"So he was telling the truth"

"Yeah."

"What now?"

"I guess I could break down the wall and lead Earl to Level 3."

"Sounds like a plan."

Clark started to break down the wall with his bare hands, and a elevator entrance was revealed.

"Let's find an intercom."

They walked around the plant and found the intercom system.

"Earl! I found Level 3!" Clark says in the intercom. "It's here! Don't you want to see it? I promise!"  
Nicola looked at Clark and smirked at how corny he sounded.

"Come on, let's meet them there," said Clark.

Clark supersped down the hallway back nearby the elevator, while Nicola orbed just as the elevator doors closed. Nicola waited a few moments until Clark showed up.

"What took you so long?" Nicola asked grinning.

"I shut of the broken gas valve."  
"Oh."

"I'm going down there, you stay here."

"No! I'm going down with you."  
"I don't want to put you in danger."  
"Look Clark, how about this. I'll orb down out of sight, then if you need help, I'll be there."

"Fine."

While Clark got into the elevator, Nicola orbed down to Level 3. When she got there, she was on the ground, and above her she saw Earl and Lex on a catwalk. She couldn't hear what they were talking about, but Earl looked pretty pissed. Soon she saw Clark enter the picture, and then Earl started to shake the catwalk. In the middle of shaking the catwalk, the jitters come back and Earl's convulses shake the catwalk really hard, causing the catwalk to break. Lex and Earl fall, hanging by the rail.

"Clark!" yelled Lex.

Lex fell again, and caught Earl's feet.

"No! Oh God!" yelled Lex.

Nicola watched Clark inch across the catwalk towards Earl and Lex. Nicola used her telekinetic powers to try to keep the catwalk from falling. Clark took Earl by the hand and tried to help him up. Nicola knew that Earl probably was making Clark a little weak, so, even though he may not have needed it, Nicola gave Clark a little help pulling Earl up with her telekinetic powers. Clark managed to pull Earl up, and then Earl moves off the catwalk towards the elevator.

Next, Clark helped Lex up to safety, well close to safety. Nicola decided that there probably fine and stopped using her telekinetic powers to hold up the catwalk. All of sudden, Earl starts to convulse again, right on the edge of the catwalk and gripped the rail. The catwalk starts to shake again, and is about to fall, when Lex and Clark dive off the catwalk onto the platform Earl is standing on. The catwalk fell nearby Nicola, and she decided to orb back out to the elevator entrance.

A few minutes later, Clark, Earl, and Lex walked out of the elevator, and saw Nicola waiting for them.

"What are you doing here?" Lex asked her, giving her a look of suspicion.

"Got lost on my way out," lied Nicola.

Lex gave Nicola another look, but then decided to drop it.

They walk to the exit to find the steel door opened. They walk up the stretch and out to where everyone is waiting outside. The medics take Earl and put him on the stretcher to an ambulance, while Clark, Lex, and Nicola walk to where their parents were waiting for them. Nicola found her parents in state of happiness and anger; they were happy that she was safe, but mad she stayed in the building.

"What were you doing in there?" her mother asked as she pulled Nicola into a hug.

"I got lost on my way out," Nicola lied again. Like she was really going to tell the truth.

"Really?" asked her mother, not believing that crap for a moment.

"I went to the bathroom prior to the hostage takeover, and got lost on my way back."

"Alright. If you say so," said Nicola's mother reluctantly.

Nicola pulled away from her mother and watched Clark and his parent's little post-crisis reunion, then turned her attention to Lex.

She watched as Lex and his father exchange harsh words then saw reporters start swarming around the two men. After answering a few questions, Lionel Luthor said, "Please, Please. My son has been through quite an ordeal." And she watched as Lionel pulled Lex into a hug. Nicola knew that the hug was merely a publicity twist, and she saddened, her heart went out to Lex. She watched as Lex sullenly looked over toward the Kent family, and could tell Lex was jealous of Clark's relationship with his family.

The next afternoon, a little less than 24 hours after the hostage ordeal, Nicola borrowed the family car again and drove to Nell's Boutique in town. She walked into the flower shop and looked around for some flowers to put in a bouquet. She knew each flower had meaning, but she decided just to pick the flowers she liked. She grabbed five yellow roses, four white carnations, three deep pink roses, three purple lilacs, three and finally a short stemmed sunflower. She took her collection of flowers up to the counter where she found Lana and her Aunt Nell talking. Lana turned and saw Nicola standing before her.

"Oh, hey Nicola," said Lana.

"Hi Lana. How are you?"

"Fine. And you?"

"Same."

"Who are the flowers for?"

"Just a friend," Nicola simply replied.

Nell took the flowers and arranged them. She wrapped the plastic thing around it then handed them back to Nicola. Nell told her the price, and Nicola handed Nell some money. After she got her change, Nicola said goodbye to Lana then walked out of the shop and went to her car.

She drove a couple miles to the outskirts of Smallville to a house where she had visited a week before. Her car pulled up to the gate, and Nicola told the security guard who she was. She semi-hoped that the person she was there to see wasn't home and she could just leave the flowers and the card with the guard, but instead the guard buzzed the owner of the house, and then after talking to the owner, let Nicola through the gate.

Nicola drove down the driveway to the circular part, then parked in front of the entrance. She grabbed the flowers and the card she made, then walked up the steps that lead to the entrance. By the time she reached the door, she almost regretted coming. What could have possible possessed her to actually come to his house? Instead of fleeing back down the steps to her car, Nicola grabbed one of the knockers and clamped it down hard twice. Seconds later, the door opens, revealing a maid.

"Mr. Luthor is waiting for you in the study," the maid said to her, opening the door wider so Nicola could pass through.

"Thank you," smiled Nicola as she walked past the maid.

She walked down the hallway to where she remembered the study was. She pushed open the door and found Lex sitting at the desk in front of computer. At the sound of the door shutting, Lex removed his eyes from the computer screen and glanced at Nicola as she hid the flowers behind her back.

"Ah, Miss Lively, what do I owe the pleasure?" Lex asked as he stood up and walked towards Nicola.

"Well, I brought you something," said Nicola.

"Really?"  
Nicola brought her hands out from behind her back and revealed her flowers and the card. Nicola saw a smile curled on Lex's face as he took the card and flowers.

"It's just a little thank you."

"For what?" asked Lex, innocently.

"For risking your life to save mine and my classes."

"Well, no one can hold hostages on my plant and get away with it." Lex walked over to the desk. "You can take a seat if you like."

"No, that's alright. I'm fine standing."

Lex pushed a button on the phone then talked into it.

"Maria, could you please come put these flowers in a vase? Thank you."

Within seconds, the maid who opened the door for Nicola earlier entered the study and took the flowers from Lex. When the maid was gone, Lex proceeded to open the envelope that held the card Nicola gave him. He glanced down at the front of the card and saw that there was a drawing of Olive Ole' in Popeye's arms with a speech bubble over her head saying "My Hero!" causing a smile to spread across his face.

"Did you draw this yourself?" Lex asked Nicola.

"Yeah," replied Nicola sheepishly.

"It's very good."

"Thank you," smiled Nicola.

Lex opened up the card and read the inside:

Dear Lex,

Something came over me last night and I decided to write you a thank you card to show my appreciation for what you did yesterday. I know, how corny, but whatever. What you did was very brave, and I'm sure many other guys in your situation would have cowardly ran off with their tails between their legs. But you, you stared danger straight in the eye and risked your neck for a bunch of people you didn't even know, and I admire that. So, here is my letter of thanks and I hope to get to know you more in the future.

Sincerely, 

Nicola

Lex looked up from card and saw Nicola trying to stare everywhere except his direction. Lex thought over the words in the card and a 100% genuine smile spread across his face.

"Thank you for the card and flowers," said Lex.

Nicola looked up at Lex and into his eyes.

"You're welcome."

"Would you like something to drink?"

"Actually, I have to head off to work. But thank you though."

"Why don't I walk you to the door then?"

Nicola turned and felt Lex's hand on the small of her back as he led her out of the study, down the hallway to the front door.

"Did I every tell you this was an awesome place? Not very homey though."  
"My thoughts exactly."

Lex opened the front door and Nicola walked out.

"Well, see you later."

"Count on it. And thank you again for the flowers and card."  
"My pleasure."

Nicola smiled at Lex who returned with his signature smile. Lex watched as the girl bounced down the steps. There was something about this teenager that intrigued him (in a different way than Clark did). He hoped he'd get to know Nicola more in the future, just as she did him. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

TBC soon, hopefully. I hope this chapter was okay. The next chapter is going to be totally original and not revolve around an episode.


	5. Happy New Year Indeed

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Rating: Still PG-13.

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Disclaimer: Contrary to belief, I still don't own Smallville.

****

Author's Notes: Finally a new chapter! Woo hoo! Yeah, I know I took a freakin' long time to write this new chapter, but it was hard cuz this was 100% totally my own plot for once, and I kept getting writer's block, so sue me. I'll try to get a new chapter up soon. It'll probably take less time than this chapter did (less than a month at least), and that plot will take place around the episode "Rogue." 

I'm sorry if this chapter is crappy, and if you agree with me, go ahead and tell me so in your review, except please have constructive criticism, not deconstructive. I'd really appreciate it, thanks.

Thanks to everyone who reviewed, I really appreciate the feedback. Oh, and I took and will take all your couple pairing ideas into consideration.

Again, if you review it will probably make me more motivated to write faster.

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It was a couple weeks after going to Lex's manor and the incident at the LuthorCorps plant, when Nicola had received the New Year's Eve party invitation in the mail. Apparently Lex's father forced Lex to throw a New Year's party for LuthorCorps employees and associates and Lex decided to invite Clark, Lana, Pete, Chloe, and herself. Unfortunately, if he was going to invite Lana, he'd had to invite Whitney, even though that wasn't part of his plan. Nicola had heard about Lex's support of a Lana/Clark relationship from Clark, so she knew Lex would probably try to find a way to separate Whitney and Lana and somehow throw Clark and Lana when the clock hit twelve.

So now it was 8:30 PM on New Year's Eve and Nicola found herself getting ready for the party that would start in an hour and a half. After taking a long shower, Nicola went down into her room. She put on the gown she had transformed an old dress into, then slipped on some comfortable chunky, medium-high-healed dress shoes. After doing her hair, brushing her teeth, and putting on some make-up, she grabbed her purse and went upstairs to the living room.

When she entered, she discovered that the rest of her family was watching the Nickelodeon countdown to 2002. Her mother looked up and saw Nicola standing in the doorway, and her mouth practically dropped.

"Nicola, you look beautiful," complimented Juliet.

"Thank you," replied Nicola.

Nicola glanced at the grandfather clock that stood on one of the nearby walls and read the time. She had about 25 minutes until the party started.

"Well, I better get going if I want to pick up Pete, Chloe, and Clark and still make it to the party on time," Nicola informed her mom.

"Okay honey, have fun," smiled Juliet.

"I will. Oh and thanks again for letting me borrow the car tonight."

"You're welcome. Just try to be home by 1:30."

"Okay, bye."

"Bye. Drive safe."  
"I always do."

Nicola turned her heal and walked to the front door, grabbing her coat on her way out of the house. She walked down the path to her family's car and got in. She started her car and drove into town towards Pete's house. She pulled up in front of his house and honked two times as planned. Within seconds, Pete slid out of the house and slipped into the passenger seat.

"Hey Nicola," greeted Pete.

"Hi Pete," returned Nicola.

"So we're headed off to Chloe's now?" asked Pete.

"Yeah. But let me pick up some coffee from the Beanery first."

"Okay."

Nicola put the care in drive and rode down the street towards the downtown area of Smallville. Within a couple minutes, Nicola and Pete found themselves in front of the Beanery. Nicola opened her car door, as did Pete. As Nicola reached over to the side of the car Pete was standing at, Pete finally got a good look of Nicola, practically causing his mouth to hang open. Nicola noticed this and asked him if something was wrong.

"No, it's just you look" replied Pete, trying to find words.

"Oh my God, please don't say I look awful, because I will just rush home and change," groaned Nicola.

"No, no, it's not that at all You look amazing," complimented Pete.

"Thank you," smiled Nicola, with a breath of relief. She glanced over Pete and took in the sight of him in his tuxedo. "You don't look so bad yourself."

"Why thank you. Although, I really don't feel that comfortable in this monkey suit," admitted Pete.

"Trust me, I would rather be going to this party in jeans and a t-shirt," replied Nicola. "Come on, let's go inside before they close."

"Right."

Nicola turned towards the Beanery's doors and stepped through, followed by Pete. She ordered herself a Carmel mochachino to go and knew that Chloe would also appreciate a nice, hot cup of coffee herself, so she got Chloe something too.

"Do you want something Pete?" asked Nicola.

"Nah, I'm good."

Nicola paid for the drinks, then after getting the two cups, she and Pete walked back to her car. Pete offered to Nicola to hold Chloe's cup, so she handed it over to him. While she drove to Chloe's house, she only downed a small portion of her drink since it was still scorching hot. When she got to Chloe's house, she honked twice, as she did earlier with Pete, and moments later, Chloe rushed out of her house, down the stretch of walkway, and into the backseat of Nicola's car.

"Come on let's go," said Chloe. "Before my father rushes out and makes sure we definitely don't need the ride to the party."

"Okay"

Nicola took the car out of park, and drove down the road, away from Chloe's house.

"Oh, I bought you some coffee," Nicola informed her while Pete handed Chloe the cup.

"Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you," said Chloe. "I've been craving one since I started getting ready for this party."

"No problem So your dad's going to be at the party too, right?"

"Yeah. And I'm going to do my best to avoid him like the plague," snorted Chloe. "Don't get me wrong, I love the guy, but sometimes he can get a little embarrassing in public."  
"I hear ya," said Nicola, sympathizing with her.

Soon, they arrive at the Kent farm, and Nicola honked again. Within a couple minutes, Clark strolled out if his, down the porch steps, and slipped into the car next to Chloe.

"Hey guys, sorry it took so long," apologized Clark. "My parent's were just laying down the last few ground rules."  
"I'm still surprised they're letting you go to the party after that blow out a couple weeks ago," commented Chloe.

"Yeah, well, after a lot of begging and pleading, they finally agreed to let me go."

"If that had been me, my parents would have locked me up and thrown away the key," said Pete.

"Same here," added Nicola.

"Yeah, well, my parent's can be pretty lenient sometimes," shrugged Clark.

"I wonder why Lex invited us to the party," pondered Pete, changing the subject.

"Well, he is one of Clark's new friends," replied Chloe.

"He probably just wanted to see a few friendly faces at his party," added Clark.

'He probably invited Clark and Lana as another attempt to hook them up,' Nicola re-thought to herself. 'The only reason he invited the rest of us was because the two-forementioned parties wouldn't have come without us. Lex will most likely come up with some scheme to break apart Lana and Whitney before midnight so Clark and Lana can be together for the countdown to 2002.'

"Nicola!" said Pete, breaking her from her thoughts.

"Huh?"

"Thought we lost you for a second," joked Pete. "I was asking you what time you have to be home tonight."

"Oh2:00."

"2:00? My parents told me to be home by one."

"Mine too," added Clark.

"My dad said I had to go home with him whenever after midnight he decided to leave," complained Chloe.

"Well, I am older than you guys," Nicola reminded them.

"True."

"I just hope the party won't be too boring," said Pete.

"Well, I'm sure we'll be entertained in some way," replied Nicola.

Soon they pulled up to the Luthor Manor and got out of the car. They walked up the long stairway that led to the front door. The four teens stopped in front of the door and Chloe steeped forward to ring the doorbell. Within seconds the door opened revealing a maid.

"Come in," the maid gestured to them. They walked into the foyer and saw a butler also in the hallway. "Gerard can take your coats."

The group took off their overcoats and handed them to Gerard.

"The party is in the ballroom," the maid informed them. "Follow me."

"Ballroom?" Chloe mouthed to her friends.

The other three teens shrugged and they all followed the maid down the long hallway. Less than a minute later, they found themselves walking into a grand ballroom. On one side of the room was a long table of catered foods and drinks and scattered through-out the room were rounds tables for the guests to sit at. Only a few people were settled into seats since it was only a few minutes after 10. There was also a small band/orchestra performing at one end of the room.

"Glad you all could make it," a voice said from behind them.

The four teens turned around to see Lex standing behind them.

"Thanks for inviting us," said Clark.

"So, how much longer do you think it will be till the rest of your guests will be here?" Nicola asked Lex.

"Not long. Employees tend to try to be nearly on time for the Luthor soirées, to make a good impression of course," replied Lex. "So, Miss Sullivan, do I expect your father to make it tonight?"

"Yeah, he should be here soon," answered Chloe.

"Great. Well, I must uphold my duty as host and mingle with the other party guest. I'll talk with you guys later," said Lex, before turning and walking to a group of adults at one of the tables.

"So, what do you guys want to do?" asked Nicola.

"I say we grab some food and sit," suggested Pete.

"That sounds like a good idea, Pete," agreed Clark.

"Didn't you guys eat _before_ you left your homes?" asked Nicola.

"Yeah, but I always have room for more food," grinned Pete.

He and Clark rushed off to tables of food, leaving the two girls by themselves.

"Guys," Chloe rolled her eyes.

"I'm surprised they're not fat by now, considering how much they eat," commented Nicola.

"I know."

"Come on, let's go stop them before they eat everything on the table."

Nicola and Chloe walked over to the table where Pete and Clark were loading up on finger sandwiches and other food items. Both Chloe and Nicola grabbed a small plate and placed a few appetizers on top of it, then, after grabbing some punch to drink, they followed Pete and Clark to one of the empty, round tables.

As Nicola sat down in her seat, she took in the music that was playing by the small band/orchestra.

"Jeez, couldn't they have chosen some music with an upbeat tempo?" complained Pete.

"What, and I suppose you were hoping they'd have a DJ spinning the latest tunes?" joked Nicola. "Besides, I think it's pretty soothing music."

"Yeah, I guess," replied Pete. "So what are we going to do to entertain ourselves until the count-down starts?" 

"Well, it looks like those doors lead to the garden, why don't we look around there?" suggested Chloe.

"I guess so," said Pete. "You two coming?"

As Pete asked the question, Pete, Chloe, and Nicola watched Clark's attention move to the ballroom doors they had previously entered from.

"No, I think I'm going to stay here," said Clark, but while still staring past them.

Chloe, Nicola, Pete turned to see what had taken ahold of their friend's attention, and saw none other than Lana Lang entering the room.

"Surprise, surprise," Chloe sarcastically said under her breath in a volume only Nicola and Pete could hear.

"I'll catch up with you guys in a second," said Nicola.

"Alright, well, will see you in a few then," said Pete.

And with that, Pete and Chloe left Nicola and Clark for outside. Within seconds, Lana noticed Clark and Nicola, and walked over to them.

"Hi Lana!" said Clark enthusiastically.

"Hi Clark," smiled Lana. "Hi Nicola."

"Hi."

"So how's the party so far?" asked Lana.

"Oh, we haven't been here long enough to fully absorb the atmosphere," replied Clark.

"So, where's Whitney?" asked Nicola.

At the mention of Whitney's name, Clark's face turned to a frown.

"He wanted to park his car himself."

"Smart idea, what with his car troubles in the past week," said Nicola.

"Yeah."

"Well, I'm going to the garden to meet up with Pete and Chloe. I'll see you guys later."

"Alright."

"Bye Nicola."

"Bye Clark."

Nicola turned and walked in the path that Pete and Chloe had just taken moments before, leaving Clark and Lana to their idle small talk before Whitney would come and take Lana's attention away from Clark. 

Outside, Nicola walked into the garden, hoping to find Chloe and Pete making out somewhere just so something interesting would happen that night, but as expected, Chloe and Pete were sitting at the foot of a small fountain.

"Hey guys," greeted Nicola.

"What, you didn't want to stay for the 'Lana and Clark Show?'" asked Chloe.

"Please, I have better things to do then watch Clark hopes go way up, until Whitney enters, thus bursting Clark's bubble."

"True that."

"How are you two enjoying the garden?"

"Well, I'm just happy it's not cold tonight," said Pete.

"Same here," said Chloe.

"I can't believe I agreed to come to this, I could be in Metropolis partying with my old friends at some club," sighed Nicola.

"Why did you agree to come to this?" asked Chloe.

'Well, it wasn't to see Lex,' she thought to herself sarcastically.

But instead of saying that outloud, she simply retorted, "Well, why did you come?"

"I asked you first, besides, I probably would have come with my dad anyway."

"Well, the reason I came was my mom thought it would be better, and safer, for me to just stay in Smallville for New Years," replied Nicola, which was half-true. Her mom did think that, but that wasn't the real reason she decided to come to this party.

"Well, I say we blow this popsicle stand and go to the Beanery for their countdown," said Pete.

"Sounds like a plan to me," said Chloe.

"Guys, we can't leave without Clark and you know he will want to stay here because a) it would be rude to leave a party Lex invited him to, and b) Lana is here."  
"I guess," sighed Pete.

"You're right," replied Chloe.

"So why don't we make the best of this situation and do something fun?" suggested Nicola.

"Like what?" asked Pete.

"Well, I know for a fact Lex has a pool table, and I know which room it's in. Let's go back into the ballroom, pretend we need to find a bathroom, and then sneak down the hall to the pool table.

"Sounds cool to me," said Pete.

"Great, whatever, let's go," said Chloe, just happy to finally do something that will be entertaining.

They start walking to the ballroom doors when Chloe stopped after coming to a realization.

"Wait. What do you mean 'you know for a fact'?" Chloe asked Nicola.

Nicola stopped and turned to face Chloe.

"I was snooping around the manor when Lana had her party and came across it," shrugged Nicola.

"Did you get caught?" asked Pete.

"Yeah. Lex found me playing pool."

"Really? What'd he do?" asked Chloe.

"Joined me."

"You played pool with billionaire Lex Luthor."

"Yeah? So?"

"Nothing."

They continued their walk to the ballroom and scanned the room for Clark. Within seconds they found him with Lex Luthor, Lana, and an uncomfortable looking Whitney.

"Okay, you guys slip outside in the hall, and I'll go over to them and make an excuse of where you guys are, then slip away myself. Alright?" said Nicola.

"Alright," replied Pete.

"Sure," said Chloe.

Chloe and Pete headed for the door while Nicola headed for the group.

"Hey guys," Nicola greeted her friends and Whitney.

"Hi Nicola. Where's Pete and Chloe?" asked Clark.

"They're still out in the garden," lied Nicola.

"Alright, maybe Ross is putting the moves on Sullivan," said Whitney.

"I highly doubt that, Fordman," Nicola rolled her eyes. "So what were you guys talking about prior to my joining you guys?"

"Well, I was just thanking Lex for inviting Whitney and myself to this wonderful New Year's party," replied Lana.

"And I was telling her it wasn't that wonderful of a party," Lex said with this trademark smirk-smile in tact.

"Oh Lex, don't berate your parties like that, what would your father say?" joked Nicola.

"He'd probably say it was my fault for the failure of the party," replied Lex bitterly.

"Speaking of your father, isn't that him right now?" asked Clark, nodding towards the entrance to the ballroom.

Lex, Lana, Whitney, and Nicola turned their attention to the door and saw Lionel Luthor standing at the door with some young women probably younger than Lex by his side.

"Yes it is," replied Lex. "He's probably here for his 20 minute appearance before slipping off back to Metropolis for a "better party." I better go talk to him before he comes over here to ridicule me. I'll catch up with you guys later."

"Alright," replied Clark.

Lex turned and headed for his father, leaving Clark, Lana, Whitney, and Nicola.

"Well, I'm going to go find a restroom. I'll see you guys later," Nicola said after a few moments of silence.

"Sure you don't want Lana to go with you?" asked Whitney.

Nicola's eyebrow raised.

"Why would I want her to come with me? No offense Lana."

"None taken," smiled Lana.

"I just thought you girls liked to go in pairs to the bathroom or something," shrugged Whitney.

"Well, I can handle this on my own. Like I said before, I'll see you guys later," said Nicola, stressing on the word _later_.

Nicola turned and walked past Lex and his father, out the ballroom door, unaware that Lex watched her exit. As soon as she got outside into the hall, she found Pete and Chloe and led them to the study where the pool table was located.

A few minutes before: Lex walked to Lionel.

"Hello father. I see you decided to show up to this little soiree that you decided to throw."

"Well this is my company party, why wouldn't I show up?" asked Lionel in a condescending tone.

"Who's your friend here?" Lex asked his father, ignoring the previous snappy remark.

"This, Lex, is Marissa Larkin."

"Pleasure to meet you Lex," smiled Marissa as Lex's attention moved to watching Nicola exit the ballroom.

"How long are you staying for?" Lex asked Lionel, turning his attention back to his father.

"Long enough. I do have other affairs to attend to in Metropolis."  
"Of course."

"Well, I must talk to some of our clients. See you around, Lex," said Lionel.

Lionel placed his hand at the small of Marissa's back and led her further into the ballroom to a table full of associates. After Lionel sat down, Lex walked back to his other friends.

"Where was Nicola headed?" Lex asked Clark.

"Bathroom," replied Clark.

"Oh."

"So, how long is your dad staying for?" asked Clark.

"Who knows. Probably not that long."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Later on that evening, in the Luthor study.

Chloe, Pete, and Nicola managed to billiards for almost 2 hours, when Pete realized that it was about five minutes till the countdown to 2002.

"Guys, we really should get back to the party for the countdown," said Pete.

"What time is it?" asked Chloe who had forgotten her watch at home.

"11:54," replied Pete.

"Well then, let's get back," said Chloe.

Chloe and Pete started to walk towards the door when they noticed Nicola wasn't following them.

"You coming?" asked Chloe.

"Why don't you guys go without me, I'll be there in a sec," replied Nicola.

"Alright," said Chloe.

Chloe and Pete turned around again and walked out the door back to the ballroom. With her two friends gone, Nicola turned back to the pool table with no intention of going back to the party. Instead every fiber of her body was planing on staying to practice her shots. She wasn't a big fan of the essence of the New Year's countdown, especially when she didn't have that "special someone" to celebrate with. She was 100% content with staying in the study alone with the pool table.

After taking a few shots, behind her, the door opened unnoticed.

"Not a party person, I take it?" Nicola heard a familiar voice behind her ask.

"Not really," Nicola replied turning around, sitting partially on the edge of the pool table. "And why aren't you gracing your guests by leading the countdown, Lex?"

"Oh, I found more pressing matters here," replied Lex.

"Shouldn't you be in the ballroom cohearsing some plan to get Whitney and Lana apart so our dear friend Clark could make his move?"

"Whatever are you talking about?" Lex asked innocently.

"Don't deny it. Clark's told me about your support of the Kent/Lang merger. Don't tell me that the whole reason for inviting Clark and the gang wasn't part of your plan for tonight to get Clark and Lana together once and for all."

"While I do support Clark in his desire to woe Miss Lang, I assure you, that was not apart of any plans I had for tonight," Lex said suggestively, stepping closer to Nicola.

"Really, then what were your plans?" Nicola asked incredulously.

"Well, to be honest, for the last few weeks I couldn't get a certain female out of my head," Lex admitted.

"Is that a fact?" she asked looking up at him.

"Yes, she somehow managed to captivate my interest." 

"Anyone I know?" Nicola's face just inches from Lex's.

"As a matter of fact, I believe you know her quite well."  
Lex placed his hand on Nicola's cheek, then slowly moved his lip to touch hers. At first their kiss was gentle and chastely, but soon it became more passionate and hungry. Nicola wrapped her arms around Lex's neck and pulled him closer to her. As the became in basic make-out mode, in the background they heard shouts of "Happy New Year!" and the noise from the party noise-makers. Nicola pulled away from Lex for a second.

"Guess we missed the countdown," said Nicola.

"Well, this is much better than a countdown," replied Lex, moving back in for a kiss.

Nicola pulled away from Lex again.

"Why don't me move this to a more comfortable place?" she suggested. She grabbed his hand and guided him to the couch chairs that were in front of the fireplace and sat him down on one, then sat in his lap. She placed her hands on Lex's cheeks, then moved in for another kiss. Being on his lap, they were eye-level, so no one's neck would cramp.

After about 20 minutes of basically making out, Nicola thought she heard heavy footsteps coming towards the room. She didn't have Clark's x-ray vision to know the footsteps belonged to her tall friend himself. Nicola pulled her lips away from Lex's and moved them to his neck so she could concentrate on locking the doors that led into the room to the hall. Sure, Clark could easily break through the door, but Nicola knew he wouldn't and hoped he would just decide that they weren't there and leave. Instead, after Clark twisted the doorknob and decided that either the door was locked or stuck, he knocked on the door, which stopped Nicola from continuing to suck on Lex's neck.

"Lex, Nicola? Are you guys in there?"

Nicola sighed and started to stand up to get off from Lex's lap, but Lex held onto her arm and brought her back to his lap.

"Let's ignore him, maybe he'll go away," Lex whispered to Nicola, planting his lips back on hers. The kiss made her momentarily forget about Clark, before his voice brought her back to reality m.

"Nicola, if you're in there, we really need to go. Unlike you, Pete and I have an early curfew," Clark said through the door. Clark tugged out the door again, but it still wouldn't open. "I think the door's stuck."

Nicola slowly pulled away from Lex and stood up.

"I have to give Clark and Pete a ride home," she said softly and disappointedly.

"Do you really have to or are using them as an excuse?" asked Lex, standing up next to Nicola.

"Lex, I'm their only ride home. Unless"

Lex watched as Nicola moved to the door and started to tug it like it was stuck, after three pulls, she unlocked the door with her mind, and the door opened, revealing Clark standing in the doorway.

"Hey Clark," smiled Nicola.

"Hey Nicola. What were you guys doing?" asked Clark, looking past Nicola to see the back of Lex appearing to be interested in something on the bookshelf.

"Well, Lex and I were playing pool, then I had him show me around upstairs to take a look at his book collection," lied Nicola. "I heard you calling though."

"Oh."

"So, you and Pete want to go home, do you?" asked Nicola.

"Well, we kind of do have a curfew to maintain."

"Has Chloe and her dad left yet?"

"No not yet, there with Pete in the front hallway, waiting for us. Why?"

"Well, I wasn't done looking through Lex's book collection yet, and I figured since I'm here, might as well check it out."

"Alright. I'll go see if we can get a ride, I'm sure it'd be okay."

Clark started to turn, and was about to walk back to the front hall, but he stopped and turned back to face Nicola.

"Oh, Lex," said Clark.

Lex turned around from his spot in the study and faced Clark.

"You might want to go to the ballroom to bid your guests farewell. I think that they want to leave, but don't want to go without thanking you or something again."

"Alright Clark. I'll be there in a second."

"Okay. Nicola, if I'm not back in a few minutes, that means we got a ride from Chloe."

"Alright. See you later then, Clark."

"See you."

Clark turned back around and walked down the hallway back to Pete and Chloe. As Clark got further down the hall, Nicola closed the door and turned to face Lex, who was only a few feet away from her now.

"Well, you should go attend to your guests," said Nicola.

"That probably would be expected of me," replied Lex who inched closer to Nicola and kissed her on the lips.

Nicola closed her eyes and let herself go in the kiss. Her back was up against the door as moved his kisses from her lips, to her cheek, and finally lingered to her neck.

"Lex," breathed Nicola. As much as Nicola was enjoying herself at the moment, she knew they should put it on hold so Lex could attend to his duties as host. "The sooner you say goodbye to your guests now, the sooner we can continue this private party."

"I suppose you're right," he replied moving his lips back to Nicola's.

"I know I'm right," grinned Nicola, breaking their kiss. "Now, you go to your guests and then get your sexy ass back here."

"You think my ass is sexy?" smirked Lex.

Nicola rolled her eyes.

"I'll be back," said Lex.

He opened the other door that Nicola's back wasn't up against, and left the room for his guests. As the door closed behind Lex, Nicola walked back over to one of the couch chairs and plopped down in it.

"I just made out with Lex Luthor," she said outloud to herself. 

She couldn't believe it. Never in her wildest dreams had she ever thought she would find herself snogging one of the country's most eligible- and sexy- sought-after bachelors.

"Snogging?" she snorted to herself. "I'm such a dork."

Nicola stood up again, and decided to take a look at the Luthor collection of books. She skimmed through the shelves that were in her line of sight while she waited for Lex to return. After looking through a couple of shelves, she turned to Lex's desk and noticed a mp3 player on top of it. Curious, she placed the headphones on her ears and pushed play. Within seconds, the first chords of Incubus' song 'Drive' blasted into her eardrums.

Because the music was so loud, she didn't hear the door open and footsteps move towards her. As the chorus started to play, Nicola two hands touch her arms, making her heart leap out of her chest (metaphorically speaking, of course.) She turned around to find the pair of strong hands belonged to the person she was waiting for. Instead of a warm embrace, Nicola shoved Lex slightly, then pulled the headphones off her head and placed them on the desk before pushing stop on the player.

"Jeez, give me a heart attack, why don't you."

"Sorry. Snoopy aren't we?" referring to the fact that she was listening to his mp3 player.

"I was curious to what the infamous Lex Luthor could possibly listen to, and let's just say I was pretty surprised to find Incubus."

"And what did you think I listened to?"

"You seem like the Mozart type to me."

"Mozart?" repeats Lex.

"Yep. You seem like the type who has season tickets to all the Metropolis Symphony Theatre and Metropolis Opera House."

"Well, I am a benefactor both establishments."

"True, but that's beyond the point. Anyway, you were fast."

"Yeah, I told my guest that I had to go to sleep early because I had a business meeting to attend to in the morning."

"And they left?"

"In record time. No one wants to hinder their boss from getting their beauty sleep. And now that they're gone, I think it was time our private New Year's party began."

Lex placed his on the back of Nicola's head and brought her face to his, restarting their kissing marathon. Nicola closed her eyes and wrapped her arms around his neck. As they got further in the kiss, Nicola's cell phone tone (Mario Bros. Theme) went off, making Nicola groan.

She pulled apart from Lex.

"I have to get that."

"Let your voice messaging get it."

He moved in for another kiss, making Nicola forget about the phone, until the chords of Mario Bros. played again. 

"If I don't get it, they'll just keep calling back."

"Then let them."

"It'll only take a second," promised Nicola.

Lex frowned, which was something he rarely did. Nicola saw this, touched his cheek, and kissed him softly.

"I'll get rid of them as fast as I can," she said to him.

She walked over to the pool table where she left her purse that had her cell in it, and took the cell out of her purse.

"This better be good," she said into the phone.

"Hello to you to," said the person on the other end of the phone.

"Oh, hey Chloe," Nicola said into the phone, trying to sound casual. "What's up?"

"What's with this staying at the Luthor Manor thing?" asked her friend.

"What are you talking about?"

"Why did you decide to stay to look at his books?"

"He was telling me about some books he thought I'd enjoy, so I decided to just look through the shelves to see what he has."

"Uh huh," said Chloe, in a tone that Nicola could tell that Chloe didn't believe her.

"Trust me Chloe, nothing scandalous or newsworthy is happening between me and Lex, okay?"

"Alright," sighed Chloe.

"I'll call you tomorrow."

"Okay, just remember, I'm going to drill you on what happened tonight."

"Fine, but it's not going to be anything juicy."

"I'll be the judge of that."

"Bye Chloe," laughed Nicola.

"Bye."

With that, Nicola hung up the phone, turned it off, and placed it back in the purse. She turned around to face Lex.

"Now, where were we?" smiled Nicola.

"I believe we were right," said Lex, moving close to Nicola. "Here," he finished, closing in for a kiss.

After a few minutes of making out standing up, Nicola decided it wasn't very comfortable.

"Lex, as much as I like making-out with you here, it's not very comfortable."

"Alright. Then let's go somewhere a little more comfortable," said Lex, taking her hand.

He opened the door and led her down the hall. After a few seconds they get to the stairs that lead upstairs. They walk past a few doors, and then Lex opened another door. He let's Nicola go in first, and then follows behind her, closing the door. Nicola glances around the room and realizes it's a bedroom, presumably Lex's bedroom.

Lex started to kiss Nicola again, and they started to move towards his bed. They stop in front of the bed and Nicola lifts up her foot to take off one of her shoes, then the other. While she had no intention of sleeping with Lex, she decided she might as well get comfortable. Lex's kisses moved down to her neck and shoulder.

"Lex," she breathed. "I'm not saying these were your intentions or anything, but if you were expecting me to sleep with you tonight, I probably won't."

Lex's kisses stopped, and his head moved up so he could look at her in the eyes.

"What makes you think I was expecting to sleep with you tonight?"

"Well, if I was a person swayed by rumors, I would believe what I hear about you playboy attitude. But what really sways me to that decision is the fact that were in your bedroom."

"You said you wanted to go to a more comfortable place," said Lex. "But, if you don't want to be in here"

"No, I do. I just wanted to make sure that my feelings were known."

"They are now."

"Alright, now let's get back to what we were doing before," grinned Nicola, moving her lips back to Lex's.

Slowly, Lex lowered Nicola onto the bed and positioned himself to the side of her. He moved his lips towards hers and they were in full make-out mode.

(Author's Note: So I won't bore you with details, we skip through to a few hours later into the story.)

Nicola realized they had been at it for a while and decided to pause for a second.

"What time is it?" she asked.

Lex moved to look at the time on his alarm clock.

"3:04," replied Lex. "Why?"

"Shit. I'm late," groaned Nicola slowly sitting up in bed. She scooted to the edge of the bed where her shoes were and slipped them back on. "I've got to get home," she added standing up.

Seconds later, Lex was next to her.

"I'll walk you to your car," said Lex.

Lex took hold of Nicola's hand and their fingers intertwined. He led her out of the bedroom back to the hallway downstairs that led to the main foyer. On their way to the front, Nicola stopped Lex and opened the door to the study. As she moved their direction to the pool table, out of the corner of her eye, Nicola saw the look of confusion on Lex's face.

She grabbed what she came into the room for and held it up to him.

"My purse," she explained.

"Right," was all Lex said in reply.

They walked to the foyer where this time it was Lex's turn to stop. He opened a drawer in a small bureau that was near the front door and took out a set of keys, then walked to a closet and took out a coat.

"Are these yours?" asked Lex.

"Yeah, how did you know where they were?"

"Wouldn't you like to know"

Nicola rolled her eyes. Lex held out her coat for her, and Nicola slipped her arms through the sleeves. He then grabbed her hand again and continued their walk to the front door. Lex opened the door, and they walked down the long steps that led to the driveway. Lex led Nicola down the driveway to where the valet had parked the cars earlier that night. Her Exterra was the only one left. Lex unlocked her car door and opened it for her, and then handed her the keys. Nicola faced Lex with her back against the back door.

"Well, thank you for walking me to my car," smiled Nicola.

"It was my pleasure," replied Lex.

They stood there for a couple of seconds in silence before Nicola leaned forward and placed a kiss on Lex's lips. Lex deepened the kiss and they stood there next to the car for a few minutes before Nicola found self-control, and ended the kiss.

"I should get going, otherwise I'll be grounded for life," grinned Nicola.

"Alright."

Nicola was about to climb into the passenger seat when she heard Lex say, "Happy New Year, Nicola."

She turned and smiled.

"Happy New Year to you too, Lex."

She slipped into the passenger seat and closed the door to the Exterra. After she started her car, she did a little wave to Lex, who smiled back, and then drove off into the night.

She zoomed down the deserted highway of Smallville with a speed that rivaled Lex's own driving. Cutting her driving time in a half, and not being pulled over by a police officer, Nicola found herself back at her home's driveway. She turned off her engine and glanced at her house in hopes that her mom might be a sleep, but she saw the light in the living room was on.

"Damn," cursed Nicola. "Why couldn't my mom have the sleeping patterns of a normal person?"

She grabbed her purse then opened her car door. After making sure the car was securely locked, she sauntered up the front steps to her impending death sentence.

As soon as she opened the front door, she saw the figure of her angry mother coming towards her. She turned to shut the door as she heard her mother hiss, "Where have you been?" in a whisper.

"Sorry mom, I got caught up," said Nicola.

"Caught up?" repeated her mom. "Caught up? Doing what?"

'Making out with Smallville's richest/most sexy man,' Nicola thought to herself, but knew she couldn't tell her mom that.

"Well, there was this party at one of the kids at my school's house and after dropping Clark and Pete home, I decided to check it out because I heard the party was going to last pretty late cuz his parent's were out of town. When I got there, there were a bunch of people I know, and we hung out, and I lost track of time," Nicola lied.

Her mom eyed her suspiciously, making Nicola wonder if she was trying to tap into her mind, so to block out some things in her mind that could get her in trouble, she kept thinking 'I'm sorry, I'll never do it again."

"Why didn't you call to tell me where you were?"

"I didn't want to wake up Brad up," said Nicola.

Her mother stayed silent for a few minutes as if trying to put together the facts, before sighing, "Fine, I believe you. Since you've never broken curfew before, I'll let it slide this time."

"Thank you so much," groveled Nicola, glad that her mom didn't take too much time interrogating her.

"But," her mother added sharply. "If it ever happens again, you're so grounded."

"Fine."

"Now, go to your room."

Nicola turned and walked down to her room. When she got there, she plopped back onto her bed and closed her eyes, replaying the events of that evening. A grin spread across her face as she reminisced every kiss that Lex gave her night and sighed. She still couldn't believe she made out with Lex Luthor. What a nice way to start off the New Year.

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TBC

Wow, it was nice to finally finish this chapter, I thought that would never happen. I'm sorry to all you people who wanted a Clark/Nicola pairing, but I was leaning towards a Lex/Nicola pairing. But hey, you never know, maybe I'll put a twist of plot somewhere, you'll just have to see.

I need your help guys. I can't decide whether or not to make the chapter really revolve around "Rogue" or make another Lex/Nicola centric chapter that takes place previously to "Rogue." What do you all think??


	6. New Year's Aftermath

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Rating: Still a lovely, steady PG-13, although,, more profanities in this chapter than there has been in previous ones.

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Disclaimer: I still, unfortunately, do not own Smallville, it characters, and many other things. I do, however, still own Nicola and her family, this bad plot, and...other stuff.

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Author's note:I know I promised that the next chapter would revolve around Rogue, but I lied, well, sort of. See, I started writing this, trying to transition into Rogue to make my plans of what happen in Rogue more effective, but the chapter kept getting longer, and longer, not getting to the Rogue part. In fact, I'm not even done with the full chapter yet, this is just part of it. I had to break it down because A) It's so freaking long, and B) I wanted to give ya'all a little something to read, kind of like a really long teaser. Anyway, I promise that I will been done with this chapter and get into the Rogue plot as soon as possible, hopefully. 

BTW, thank you to all you wonderful people who've taken the time to read and/or review my fanfic, it's greatly appreciated.

Anyway, hope you enjoy what I have so far. As always, I love feedback, so drop me a line.

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It had been a week and 3 days since Lex's New Year's party. Nicola and Lex still hadn't seen each other and it was driving Nicola crazy. Even though she was dying to see Lex again after their wonderful make-out session, she sure as hell wasn't going to go out of her way to find him; that would make her seem a little clingy and/or desperate, and neither of those words described Nicola.

On this day, Friday, January 11th, Nicola found herself sitting in the Beanery, alone, waiting for Chloe or Clark to show up. It was 6:21 PM, her two friends were late, and she was on her third cup of coffee. Clark, Chloe, and Nicola planned to meet at the Beanery 6:00 to hang out for a little while before going to school for the basketball game to cheer Pete on. Chloe had called earlier to tell Nicola she would be there a little later than anticipated due to the fact she had put some last minute touches on the Torch for next week's addition that would come out that Monday and Clark just hadn't shown up yet.

'Probably had a kitten in a tree to save,' she thought to herself. 'Or Lana.'

She drummed her fingers on the table at her booth with her back to the Beanery's entrance, considering calling Chloe and Clark, telling them she'll meet them there, when a voice from behind her caught her attention.

"Hello Miss Lively. Mind if I join you?" asked the voice that belonged to the very same person she was hoping to see for the last few days.

She turned to face him, showing no sign of the joy she felt inside.

"Of not course, Mr. Luthor," she replied coolly.

As Lex slipped into the booth seat across from her, took a slip second to take in his appearance. He was wearing something similar to what he wore when she went on that disastrous field trip to the plant (a light purple, button down dress shirt and black slacks) and took note that he looked pretty damn good.

"So, where are the other 3 Musketeers?" Lex asked with a smirk on his face.

"Chloe's putting the Torch to bed and Pete's warming up for his basketball game. Who knows where Clark is. Clark and Chloe were supposed to meet me here," she paused to look at her watch. "22 minutes ago so we could all go to Pete's basketball game."

"So you've been ditched."

"Gee, thanks for you vouch of confidence Luthor."

"I only speak the truth."

"I have not been ditched."

"Whatever you say Lively."

"So, Mr. Luthor, what brings you to this fair establishment on a Friday evening?" Nicola asked, changing the subject.

"Firstly, it's Lex."

"Then it's Nicola here."

"Okay, Nicola. I was on my home from the plant when I decided I need a nice cup of hot coffee."

"Aha."

Suddenly, Nicola's cell phone rang, and she opened her purse to gain access to it.

"What's up?"

"I'm going to have to meet you at the game," said the voice on the other end. "I still have more to do on the Torch."

"Do you want me to come and help you out?"

"No, that's okay. I'm almost finished."

"Alright, but if you need help later, just give me a call."

"Okay, no problem. Sorry that I can't meet you there as planned."

"It's fine Chloe." Nicola replied. "I'll wait a few more minutes for Clark, then I'll see you there."

"Clark's still not there?"

"Nope."

"Well, that's Clark for you; not always there when you want him, but always there when you need him."

"So true. Do you want me to bring you some coffee to the game?"

"That'd be great. Could you bring me a Latte?"

"No problem."

"Thanks. Well, I gotta go. See you in a few."

"See ya."

Nicola hung up the phone and placed it back into her purse. She looked up to see Lex smirking.

"Don't say it," she grumbled.

"Say what?" Lex asked innocently.

"I don't know... Maybe a certain sentence that starts with 'I' and ends with 'so?'" she said sarcastically.

"You mean 'I told you so?'" 

"That'd be the one."

"I wouldn't dream of it."

Nicola rolled her eyes and sighed.

"So, how long do plan on waiting for our tall friend?" Lex asked her.

"Not that long. I'm sure he'll be here soon," replied Nicola, although she wasn't so sure that he would.

'Clark, you better get your alien ass here quick,' she thought to herself, hoping in some cosmic way she could beam her thoughts to Clark.

"I haven't seen you since my New Year's bash," Lex says casually. "You haven't been avoiding me have you?"

"Not intentionally. Besides, why would I be avoiding you?" Nicola asked as if it was the most absurd question in the world.

"I don't know, maybe because you regret what we did the other night?" Lex asked, lowering his voice a notch or two.

A grin spread across Nicola's face and a very unfeminine laugh came out of her mouth when she heard this.

"What's so funny?" asked Lex, eyeing her suspiciously.

"This is a side of you I never thought existed."

"What do you mean?"

"The 'self-conscious/unsure' Lex. It's actually refreshing to see not even you are always so confident."

"What makes you think I'm unsure of myself?"

"The way you gave me a reason of why I would be avoiding you."

"Trust me, in no way did I mean to seem to be "self-conscious" by that question."

"Alright maybe that's true. Anyway, that's not the only reason it was a funny question."

"Really?"

"Yes, really."

"Then enlighten me. What else was so funny?"

"I in no way regret what happened the other night. In fact I enjoyed myself quite a bit that night."

"Then why haven't I seen you seen you since then?"

"Unlike those bimbos you've been with before, I'm not one to cling. Also, it's not like you made some big effort to see me again."

"I'm sitting here now, aren't I?"

"True."

"Hey Lex, have you seen Nicola?" Nicola heard a voice ask from behind them, interrupting her and Lex's conversation, and soon Clark was standing next to them. "Nevermind. Sorry I'm late," he apologized to Nicola. "But I see Lex was here to keep you company."

"Hello Clark," said Lex.

"Hi Lex. How you doing?"

"Fine. And you?"

"Same," replied Clark, who then turned to Nicola, suddenly realizing Chloe's absence. "Where's Chloe?" he asked as he sat next to Nicola in the booth.

"Well, unlike another person, whose name I will not mention," Nicola said, glaring at Clark. "Chloe courteously called me to let me know she wouldn't be able to make it here, and instead will meet us at the game."

"I'm really sorry, I had some extra chores to finish before my dad would let me leave," explained Clark.

"Fine, I forgive you. For now," she added with a grin. Nicola glanced down at her watched and noticed the time. "Clark, it's almost 6:30. Do you want to stay here a little while and get something to drink before we leave or do you want to head to the game now?"

"I guess we could hang around here for a little while longer."

"Alright, then I'm going to order another drink, want me to get you two anything while I'm up there?"

"A cappuccino would be great " replied Lex.

"Just coffee, black," replied Clark.

"Such a boring drink Clark. You know what? I'm going to order your drink for you," said Nicola, leaving the booth before he could protest.

"You're just going to let her change your order like that?" Lex asked as he watched Nicola walk up to the counter at the front of the Beanery.

"Well, there's not much stopping Nicola once she sets her mind to something," shrugged Clark.

Not long after leaving, Nicola came back and sat back down in her seat next to Clark.

"Our coffee should be here soon," she informed the guys.

"Great," said Clark.

"So, what are you guys doing Tuesday night?" Lex asked the two teens.

"Probably nothing," replied Nicola.

"Same here," added Clark. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, if you haven't already heard, there's going to be the opening of the Luthor Hall at the Metropolis Museum of Art and I know this is kind of last minute, but I want you two to be there."

"Wow, sounds great," said Clark. "But I'd have to check it out with my parents first."

"That'd be awesome, I miss going to the museum," said Nicola.

"I didn't take you for a museum goer," said Lex.

"Well, we've never discussed my interests now have we, Lex?" Nicola's voice oozed with sarcasm. "Anyway, when I lived in Metropolis, I visited the museum frequently. I loved getting lost in the art."

"You're from Metropolis?"

"Yes. I lived there for like 8 years before I recently moved here."

"I'm just learning new things about you by the minute."

Before anyone else could say anything, a waitress came to their table.

"Whose is the cappachino?"

"That'd be the bald one's," replied Nicola.

Lex shot Nicola a glare and Clark gave her a 'look' as the waitress placed the drink in front of Lex.

"And whose is the white chocolate mocha?"

"His," Nicola answered, nodding her head in Clark's direction.

"Then yours is the caramel cafe mocha?"

"Correct."

"Well, enjoy your drinks. If you need anything else, just come to the front counter," smiled the waitress.

"Thanks Katie," said Nicola to the waitress.

Clark placed grabbed his cup by the handle and lifted to his nose to smell the coffee.

"It's not like it's poison Clark," teased Nicola. "Just drink it."

Clark obediently took a sip of the drink, and placed it back on the table.

"Well?"

"It's not bad," admitted Clark.

"Not bad? That's all you have to say?"

Clark rolled his eyes at his friend.

"Fine. It's the best drink I've ever had in my life."

"That's what I thought," Nicola said smugly.

No one said anything for a few minutes and each person concentrated on drinking their beverages.

"So, Lex, how's the plant going?" Clark asked, trying to break the silence by making small talk.

"It's going good," replied Lex. "How's school?"

"Boring, as always."

"Guys, can we please cut the small talk?" cut in Nicola.

"And what do you suggest we talk about?" asked Lex.

"I don't know," admitted Nicola. "But small talk gets annoying."

"True."

"What time is it?" Clark asked Nicola.

She glanced down at her watch and read the time.

"It's 6:47. I guess we should get going to the game," suggested Nicola.

"Alright," said Clark, standing up. "Well, we'll see you later Lex...unless you want to come with us."

Nicola gave Clark a weird look, which puzzled Clark.

"No, that's all right Clark, I should get going too," Lex replied, not wanting to impose on the teens.

"Okay."

Lex stood up, as did Nicola. Nicola started to take money out to pay for the bill, but Lex stopped her.

"I've got this," said Lex.

"Fine, then I've got the tip," replied Nicola.

"I can afford to pay for both."

"I know you can, but that's not the point."

Lex gave in and let Nicola pay the tip, while he placed a ten down for their drinks, not caring for the change. They left their empty cups at the table, then walked out of the Beanery. Nicola stopped suddenly outside the doors of the Beanery.

"Crap, I forgot Chloe's latte, " groaned Nicola. "Clark, why don't you start the car and I'll be right there?"

Nicola reached into her pocket, pulled out her keys, and then tossed them to Clark.

"I parked over there," she informed Clark, pointing across the street.

"Alright, see you later Lex," said Clark.

"Bye Clark," replied Lex.

Nicola and Lex watched as Clark walked to the car.

"Did you do that on purpose?" asked Lex.

"What? Forget to get Chloe's coffee to delay time and make Clark leave to start the car so it's just you and me?" asked Nicola.

"Yes."

"No. But wait here a second, okay?"

"Okay..." replied Lex hesitantly.

Nicola walked into the Beanery went to the front counter to order Chloe's latte, then asked for a pen. She grabbed a napkin and then wrote something on it. After she got Chloe's latte, she walked back in front of the Beanery where Lex was standing, waiting for her return.

Nicola slipped the napkin into Lex's coat pocket. Lex gave her a strange look, but she didn't explain what she just did.

"'Night Lex," smiled Nicola.

She turned around and hustled to her car before Lex could say anything. As Nicola got into her car, Lex pulled the napkin from his pocket and read it.

"If you really want to get to know me, just give me a call. Anytime. The line's always open," Lex read to himself.

"293-4512."

Lex glanced up from the note in time to watch Nicola's car pull out of its parking spot and drive off down the street. He put the napkin back into his pocket then turned to walk to his car.

"So, what was up with you back there?" Clark asked Nicola after they started to drive off.

"What are you talking about?"

"Well, first off, the attitude with Lex."

"There was no attitude."

"Admit it. You were a little snippy with him. Did something happen at the mansion at the New Year's party? Speaking of which, you never told me what you did after we left you there."

"Nothing happened at the mansion. I guess I was just a little annoyed with him because he assumed I was ditched," semi-lied Nicola.

"Alright," replied Clark, backing off. "I guess that makes sense."

Soon they arrived at the school and Nicola found an empty spot nearby the gym to park at. They got out of the car and walked into the gym. When they walked into the gym, they searched the bleachers for Chloe. After a few minutes, they spotted their blonde friend in one of the middle rows near the half-court line. Clark and Nicola moved towards Chloe and walked past people to get to their saved seats next to Chloe.

"Hey there, guys," greeted Chloe.

"Hey Chlo," replied Nicola.

"What took you guys so long? The game's about to start."

"Almost forgot your non-fat, no foam latte," she said holding up Chloe's drink.

"Ooh, just the way I like it. Thanks," replied Chloe, taking the coffee. "I've been craving coffee for hours."

"I swear we might as well hook you up to an IV full of coffee."

"Look who's talking."

Suddenly there was a buzz from the scoreboard, indicating the start of the basketball game. The Smallville Crows were facing the Grandville Griffins. 8 minutes into the second quarter, Nicola's cell phone rang.

"Talk to me." she said into the phone.

"Enjoying the game?" asked the voice on the line.

"Yeah, but there are other things I think I'd rather be doing," replied Nicola with a smile on her face, knowing exactly who the person on the other end was. "I didn't expect your phone call so soon."

Nicola saw Chloe staring at her and Chloe mouthed to her, "Who is it?" Nicola held up her index finger as to say "just a minute," and listened to the person on the phone.

"Well, I am full of surprises."

"So I've come to learn. To what do I owe the pleasure of your phone call?"

"I was wondering what you're doing after the game."

"Probably going home or maybe go to a party with rest of the musketeers, why?"

"Well, I was wondering if you wanted to stop by the mansion later tonight and we can get better acquainted."

Nicola paused for a couple seconds, semi-contemplating her answer. Yeah, she would love to go to Lex's place to see him again, but maybe she was getting in over her head. She threw that second thought out the window.

"Sure. I'll swing by around 9:30, okay?"

"Alright, it's a date."

"Okay. See you soon."

Nicola hung up the phone and turned her attention back at the game. Chloe, feeling a little ignored, glared at Nicola.

"What?" asked Nicola, giving Chloe a weird look.

"Well?"

"Well, what?"

"Who was on the phone?"

"No one."

"No one my ass. Who are you meeting after the game?"

"Always the little reporter, aren't we?"

"It's a guy isn't it?"

"A guy? Why do you assume it was a guy?"

"Umm, maybe because it was the way you were grinning like an idiot after you answered it."

"Oh, like you do when you a certain farmboy we know and love smiles at you?"

Chloe glared at Nicola again.

"Fine, if you must know, it was someone I've recently hooked up with," replied Nicola, not knowing how her friend would react if she told her exactly whom she was meeting.

"Do I know him?"

"Maybe."

"Maybe? Don't give some BS answer like, 'maybe.' Why can't you just tell me who you're meeting?"

"Because I don't know if this guy wants to let others in on our relationship, which I don't know if we even have one, or keep it 'hush-hush.'"

"Well, it sounds to me like this guy is toying with you."

"Maybe he is. But maybe I'm toying with him to."

"Are you?" asked Chloe, arching her eyebrow.

"No," sighed Nicola. "It doesn't matter. Right now I want to concentrate on getting to know this guy first before I worry about where our supposed 'relationship' is going."

"I can understand that."

"Thanks."

The buzzard went off again, signaling the end of the first half of the game.

"Man, were you guys talking during the entire last few minutes of the first half?" asked Clark, interrupting their conversation.

"Yeah, so?" said Nicola.

Clark sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Geez, while you to were gabbing away, you missed the Crow's awesome comeback. In 5 minutes they made two three-pointers, steal the ball again from the Griffins, then make a two, getting the foul, resulting in two more baskets."

"Wow Clark, that's amazing. I'm so heartbroken that I missed it," Chloe said sarcastically.

Nicola laughed, while Clark rolled his eyes again.

"Anyway," said Clark. "I'm going to go to concessions really quick for a snack or something. Do either of you want anything?"

"Yeah, could you get me some kind of cola drink?" asked Nicola.

"Sure. What about you Chloe?"

"I'm good. Could you take this to the nearest trash can for me though?" asked Chloe, holding up her empty coffee cup.

"Sure."

He took the cup out of her hand.

"Thanks," smiled Chloe.

"Not a problem. I'll be right back."

Clark stood up and walked down the bleachers towards the doors that led to concessions.

"So are you going to tell me who this mystery guy is or not?" asked Chloe, continuing their conversation after Clark was out of earshot.

"Not yet. But when I'm ready to tell someone, you'll be the first to know."

"Alright, thanks. So were you following the game at all?"

"A little. Pete hasn't gotten a lot of playing time, but when he was in, he did pretty good."

"Alright, now when I tell Pete he did a good job I won't be lying."

"So, what are you planning on doing this weekend?"

"I'm not sure. Probably just end up hanging out with you guys. What about you?"

"Same."

"Man, we are so boring. Maybe we should do something fun this weekend."

"Like what?"

"I don't know."

"How about cow tipping?" joked Nicola.

Chloe rolled her eyes.

"Oh yeah, that sounds like loads of fun."

"Hey, it's just an idea."

Suddenly an idea popped into Chloe's head.

"We could drive to Metropolis on Sunday morning and spend the day there."

"We as in who?"

"Clark, Pete, you, and myself, of course. Who else would go?"

"Right, dumb question. Sounds like a good plan to me. Whose car should we take?"

"You should see if your parents will let you take your family car. It'll probably the most comfortable for the three hour drive."

"Yeah. I can't wait to take you guys to all my favorite, old hang-outs."

"Wouldn't that be weird if we hung-out in the same places when I lived in Metropolis?"

"That'd be hilarious. And wouldn't be strange if we've seen each other a few times, but we just don't remember one another?"

"Oh yeah."

There was a short pause in conversation.

"So, what time would we leave?"

"I say around 9:00, that way we don't have to wake up too early and we don't arrive in Metropolis too late."

"We'd probably want to leave Metropolis at seven that way we don't end up coming too late and our parents don't get mad."

"Right. Now all that's left is telling Clark and Pete about our plans and convincing our parents to let us go to Metropolis unchaperoned."

"That shouldn't be too hard since our parents know we're responsible teens who they can totally trust."

"I suppose. Here comes Clark."

"Here's your Coke," said Clark, handing the drink to Nicola.

"Thank you. Chloe and I were just talking about our plans for Sunday."

"Plans for what?" asked Clark.

"Well, I was thinking we could go to Metropolis Sunday," replied Chloe.

"Who's 'we'?"

"You, Nicola, Pete, and myself. Jeez guys, do we have anyone else in the group I'm unaware of?"

"We could invite Lex or Lana," mused Clark.

"No!" Nicola and Chloe said a little too quickly and abruptly at the same time. They gave each other questioning glances.

"Why not?" asked Clark giving them a weird look.

"Because I was thinking it would just be a bonding experience for the four of us," covered Chloe.

"Yeah, and besides, it's kind of last minute, I'm sure Lex and Lana already have plans," added Nicola.

"I guess," shrugged Clark. "Sounds like fun to me."

"Alright it's settled then. All that's left is informing Pete and our parents," said Chloe.

"Great," said Nicola.

The buzzard went off designating the start of the second half. Clark and Chloe gave the rest of the game 100% of their attention, while most of Nicola's concentration was somewhat focused on other things, such as her night later with Lex. She was anxious for the game to be over soon so she could see him as soon as possible.

The two 12 minute quarters went by seemingly fast. Unfortunately too fast for the Griffins because the Crows won 78-63. Clark, Chloe, and Nicola followed the rest of the crowd outside the gym, and then waited outside of the player's locker room for Pete. A little while later, Pete and his teammates came out of the locker room.

"Hey guys," grinned Pete.

"Hey Pete, good game," congratulated Nicola.

"Yeah, it's nice to see the team win once and a while," added Chloe.

Pete, Clark, and a few Pete's teammates who heard Chloe's comment gave her a "look," while Nicola chuckled.

"Ha, ha, Chloe," said Pete. "The team's having a little victory party at one of the cheerleader's house, wanna come?"

"Sure," said Clark.

"I guess," shrugged Chloe. "Although I could think of things I'd rather be doing than hanging out with the pompom and jock bargade," Chloe then muttered. 

Nicola glanced at her watch to see the time before saying, "Okay."

"Great. So who drove here?" asked Pete.

"Nicola and I both did," said Chloe.

"Alright well, I'll ride with Chloe, and Pete, you can ride with Nicola," said Clark.

"Okay. The party's at Tiffany Greenly's house. Do any of you know where she lives?"

All three of the other teens shook their heads in a no.

"Alright, then I'm sure if we follow one of the other cars we will find our way to her house," decided Pete.

"Sounds like a plan," said Clark.

They split up, each heading for their destined car, then they followed a group of cars they presumed were headed for the party. Luckily they guessed correctly because 10 minutes later they found themselves in front of party central.

Nicola parked nearby in an empty spot, then she and Pete headed for the house. They stood on the front steps, waiting for Chloe and Clark to make it, which they did a few moments later. They walked inside to find the party almost in full swing.

Five minutes later, Chloe and Nicola found themselves sitting on the couch trying to converse over the loud music.

"I wonder what would have happened if they lost?" Chloe yelled over the music.

"They'd probably still have a party to cheer themselves up. You know, any excuse to have a party," Nicola replied.

Nicola glanced at her watch for like the billionth time since she got to the party.

"Someone's a little anxious to get out of here," noticed Chloe.

"Yeah, well I have important matters to attend to."

"Wow, how business sounding of you."

"Shut up," scowled Nicola. 

"So, who was it that you didn't want to come to Metropolis with us, Lex or Lana?" asked Chloe, referring to Nicola's quick "no" when Clark suggested inviting their two other sorta friends.

"It's not that I don't want them to come, per se, I was just, um, thinking of two of my friends' best interests at heart," lied Nicola. 

"Your friends' best interests?" repeated Chloe.

"Yeah. I know you have a thing with Lana, and Pete has a thing about Lex."

"I don't have a thing with Lana."

"Oh, please. Deny it all you want, Chlo, but I know you resent Lana because she has managed to captivate the attention of Clark without even trying or realizing it or even giving him the time of day for the longest time, while you've given Clark your full attention and the poor fool doesn't even notice your potential."

"Did you receive a severe blow to the head before you talked to me tonight, because you're obviously in a delusional state of mind right now?"

"Chloe, the first step is admittance."

"So, I know you're kind of friends with Lana," started Chloe, ignoring her friend's last comment. "So it obviously wasn't her you didn't want to have join us on our adventure to Metropolis. And that leaves us with Lex. But why wouldn't you want Lex to join us?" pondered Chloe.

"Like I said, Pete. Lex. Thing. Any of this ringing a bell?"

"Yeah, I know Pete doesn't like Lex because his father basically stole the Ross's land from them, but your reaction wasn't one of a concerned friend."

Chloe paused for a minute, then a light bulb flashed in her head and a grin spread across her face.

"Ohmygod. Something happened between you and Lex on New Year's Eve, didn't it?"

"Okay, now who's delusional?" asked Nicola.

She was a good liar, but Chloe knew better. And when her wheels started turning, there was no stopping her.

"Don't feed me that bull. I remember when Clark asked me if he and Pete could get a ride he said something about you staying to look at his book collection. Like I said when I called you that night, I know you like to read, but why would you stay at Lex's mansion to look at his library? I suspected that was a bullshit answer you gave Clark, which you knew he'd fall for because he is a little naive, and you really stayed with Lex so you two could be alone. Now I know it was to play some tonsil-hockey. You didn't spend the night there did you? Wait, he's the guy you're meeting tonight isn't he? No wonder you've been avoiding my questions like the plague. It's all clear now."

"Okay, I'm going to leave you and your delusional notions and get something to drink. You want anything?"

"Yeah, make sure it's canned or bottled. Who knows what they put into the punch."

"Alright."

"You do know by avoiding all my previous questions and not responding to my thoughts only makes you more guilty, right?"

Nicola rolled her eyes, then stood up from the couch and walked into the kitchen. She opened the fridge and found two cans of Coke in it. She grabbed the cans and turned to walk back to Chloe. As she approached the couch, she noticed that some guy had taken her seat and apparently in the process of hitting on Chloe.

"So Sully," Nicola heard the guy slur when she was within earshot of his and Chloe's conversation. "Can I call you Sully?"

'Someone sounds wasted,' Nicola thought to herself.

"No, you can't call me Sully," said Chloe. "And if you don't mind, as I said five times before, my friend was sitting there, and she'll be back any second."

"Oh, come on Sully, don't be so cold," said the guy, wrapping his arm around her. "You know you want me."

"Get off asshole," hissed Chloe, pushing him away from her.

While Nicola knew Chloe could handle this drunken twit, she decided she might as well have some fun with the guy. She shook up one of the cans in her hand then walked in front of Chloe and her annoying companion for the moment.

"Hey Chlo, who's your friend here?" she asked, flashing a fake smile at the guy.

"He was just leaving."

"Oh, that's too bad," Nicola pretended to sound disappointed.

The guy grinned up at Nicola, obviously falling for her act.

"I don't have to leave if you don't want me to."

"Could you do me a favor, please?" Nicola asked sweetly, batting her eyes.

"Anything for you, babe."

"Could you open my Coke for me? I've had the hardest time trying to open it up with my newly manicured nails."

"No problem."

The guy took the Coke from Nicola who, as she backed up from the guy, subtly gestured to Chloe to do the same thing, which Chloe caught on to. As Chloe moved away from him, he started to open the can. The can made the click noise, then all the pop sprayed all over him, which earned a lot of laughs from other partygoers, including Chloe.

Nicola put a hand in front of her face and faked a gasp.

"Ohmygod, I am so sorry," apologized Nicola. "The person who gave me the Coke must have shaken it for me to open."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," muttered the guy. "Now I have go dry myself off."

He stood up and started walking towards the bathroom, receiving snickers as he past people. As he left, Chloe cracked up even more.

"That was classic. You did on purpose didn't you?"

"Who me? Never," Nicola said innocently, but the grin on her face gave away the fact that she did indeed do it with intent. "Oh, here's your Coke. I promise, it's shook-free."

"That's okay. I think you've deserved it."

"Why thank you." Nicola opened her Coke and took a couple of sips from the can. "Don't you just love high school parties? They're just **so** eventful."

Chloe laughed whole-heartedly, then Nicola passed her drink to Chloe to share. As they started to rant equally about their brainless teenage peers that submerged themselves in stupid activities such as drinking parties, Pete and Clark walked up to her and Chloe with puzzled expressions on their faces.

"What's up guys?" smiled Nicola.

"I just over-heard Darien Walters talking about how he, and this is a direct quote, 'was hitting on that hot blonde chick from the Torch when some fucking crazy brunette sprayed Coke all over him.' You wouldn't happen to know who he would be talking about, would you?" asked Pete, knowingly.

"I have no idea who you could possibly be talking about," replied Chloe.

"Yeah, Pete, I mean, why would anyone want to waste a perfectly good Coke on Darien Walters, even if it ends up on his lap?" smirked Nicola.

"Right," said Pete, not believing them. "I know you two better than you think."

"Alright, I admit it, I wasted a Coke on Darien, but let me tell you, I'd do it again in a heartbeat. That guy is a sleaze-ball."

"I can't believe you sprayed pop on Darien Walters," laughed Pete.

"Okay, first off, I didn't spray Darien with the pop; he was the one who opened the can, I just shook it up. Secondly, will you stop calling him by his full name like he's actually important or something. And lastly, it was just a joke."

"Darien didn't take it that way," said Clark. "In fact, he seemed pretty pissed."

"Ooh, I'm so scared," Nicola replied sarcastically. "Don't worry Clark, I've dealed with people worse than Darien, it's nothing to get wound-up over."

Clark didn't say anything, he instead frowned in reply.

Nicola glanced at her watch and saw that it was 9:03. That gave her enough time to stop by her house to do a little freshening up, and then get to Lex's by 9:30.

"As much as I'd love to hang out with you guys all night, I've got to jet."

"Oh come on, at least for a few minutes?" asked Pete.

"I'm sorry, I made plans with someone."

"Plans?" questioned Clark. "As in a date? With who?"

"It's not a date. Just meeting a friend. Stop being so nosy. You're like the overprotective brother I never wanted," joked Nicola. "Anyway, I really have got to go. I'll see you guys later, alright?" 

"Okay," replied Pete.

"You played great tonight."

"Thanks," grinned Pete.

"Well, I'll see you guys tomorrow."

"Alright, goodnight, Nicola," said Clark.

"Night Clark. Bye Pete."

"Bye."

"Chloe, call me about our plans for Sunday."

"Alright, see ya. Have fun with your mystery man, although, I think I know who it is."

"Don't worry I will, and it's not who you think it is." 

Nicola turned and started to walk away from the group

"Plans?" she heard Pete ask from behind her. 

"I'll tell you later," Nicola heard Chloe respond.

A few minutes later, she found herself outside of the house, next her car. She climbed into the driver's seat, started the car, and headed off to her house.

A short amount of time passed and she found herself driving up to her house. She walked up the stairs and opened the door.

"Nicola?" she heard her mom call.

"Yeah?"  
"How was the basketball game?" her mom asked as she emerged into the hallway.

"Entertaining."

"Did you go somewhere after the game?"  
"Yes. I went to a party with Clark, Chloe, and Pete."

"Did you have fun?"

"Uh huh."

Nicola went past her mom and then down to her room. She grabbed a couple articles of clothing and threw it into a bag before going upstairs to the bathroom. She glanced into the mirror making sure looked presentable. She pondered for a second if she should change outfits, but decided against it, and instead tugged down her pink sweater, then smoothed down the sides of her jeans. She grabbed the brush and pulled it through it hair, then brushed her teeth.

"Going somewhere?" Nicola heard her mom ask from the doorway of the bathroom.

"Yeah. Is it all right if I go spend the night at Chloe's? I promise to bring the car back early tomorrow morning so you can run whatever errands you need to run."

"I suppose. We really need to get you your own car."

"I know, I know. Brad said he was going to go to that junkyard outside of Metropolis and have some totaled car towed here so I could manipulate it back to almost new."

"Be back before 8 tomorrow morning."

"I will."

"And don't stay up too late."

"I won't."

"Alright then, have fun."

"I will."

"Love you."

"Love you too."

With that, Nicola walked out of the house and back to the car. She climbed into the driver's side, started the car, and headed for her destined location. As she drove, she slipped her cell phone out of her bag, and then dialed Chloe's number.

"Hello?"

"Chlo? It's Nicola."

"What's up? Headed to meet your not so mystery man?"  
"For the last time, Chloe, it's not Lex. And yeah. The reason I'm calling is I have a favor to ask."  
"Shoot."

"Well, I told my mom I was going to spend the night at your house."

"Staying out all night with your mystery man, are we?"

"I don't know, maybe. But if I don't, could you leave your window unlocked, and I'll climb that tree next to your house and through your window?"

"No problem. Are you sure you can climb that tree or even open the window for that mater? I mean, I don't want you to fall of my tree and plunge to your death, you know."

"Don't worry Chloe, I won't kill myself trying to climb your tree, but thanks for the concern."

"What are friends for? Again, have fun with you mystery man. And later, you're going to have to spill details, even if you won't admit who he really is."

"Not a problem. And if my mom calls your house to confirm my lodging, which I doubt, then make up some excuse why I can't come to the phone, but make sure you don't say I'm asleep because she won't believe that."

"I'll try to remember that."

"Okay, thanks. Talk to you later."

"Later."

Nicola hung up the phone, and about 15 minutes later she found herself pulling up to the Luthor manor. 

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Sorry to those of you who were anticipating more Lex and Nicola action, I promise you there will be a hell of a lot more in the next chapter. Those of you who are sick of Nicola and Lex interaction-centric chapter, I apologize for the next part of this chapter, cuz it's focused on that. Anyhoo, I promise there will be more to come soon. Oh, and please review, I'll love you forever.


	7. Getting to Know You

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Rating: PG-13

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Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I haven't managed to take over ownership of the show. Damn.

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Author's Notes: Finally got this part basically done. Still no _Rogue_ action in here. Maybe in the next chapter. This chapter consists of just Lex/Nicola interactions. Gets a little steamy in the end. Must warn you; since I have no actually ummaking out experience, I guess you could say, the actions in how they make out are probably horrible, but I tried. This isn't my best stuff.

Thanks to Lexnut, smallvillebabe25, and Supergurl15 for reviewing my last chapter. You're greatly appreciated. Come on people, take these three people's lovely example and review, please. I'll love you forever.

Anyhoo, on with the story:

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Nicola climbed the flight of stairs and rang the doorbell. She tucked an imaginary loose strand of hair behind here ear and lightly bit her bottom lip, two things she did when she was nervous. Moments later, the door opened revealing Lex. 

"Lord Luthor, opening his own door? Now isn't that the shock of the century?" Nicola asked, her nervousness slipping away.

"As you said, it's my own door. Why is it a shock for me to open it myself?"

"Ah come on Luthor, I'm just messing with you. It's perfectly fine for you to open your door, even if you have tons of people to do it for you. Where are these tons of people who could have opened the door for you anyway?""

"I gave them the weekend off."

"How generous of you."

"Well, I am a generous guy.""

"Right. Well, are you going to invite me in, or do I have to stand here all night?"

"Of course, come in," gestured Lex.

"Why thank you," replied Nicola, smiling at Lex.

"I'm glad you could make it."

"No problem, I had nothing better to do," replied Nicola. Nicola noticed a flicker of disappointment in Lex's eyes that came and went so fast that most people wouldn't have noticed. "I'm just kidding Lex. I'm very glad that you called and invited me."

"Yes, well, let's go to the library," said Lex indifferently.

As Lex led Nicola to the library, she frowned.

'Jeez Nicola, stop joking around and be serious,' she ridiculed herself.

By the time she finished mentally kicking herself, they arrived in the library, and then found themselves sitting in the infamous fireplace-side chairs that they had made-out in a few weeks before.

"So..." started Nicola biting her bottom lip slightly, and shifting uncomfortably in her chair. "Where should we start?"

"I'm not sure. I've never done this before," admitted Lex.

"You're telling me in all the 21 years of your life, you've never sat down and got to know someone?"

"You say that as if it's a bad thing."

"It kind of is."

"Gee, thanks. You sure know how to make a guy feel good about himself," Lex said dryly.

"Sorry," Nicola said softly.

"I was brought up by my father to keep myself guarded, never let anyone in."

"And now you're throwing this rule out the window because...?" asked Nicola, with the shred of hope she might be special.

"Because I make it a habit to never listen to my father."

"Right," replied Nicola, all her hope crashing down.

"Well, now that I've shared something about myself, it's time for you to do the same. How do you get along with your father?"

Sadness crept along Nicola's face, and Lex noticed her expression go downcast. Tears started to fill her eyes and she tried to blink them away as she tore her gaze from Lex.

"Sorry, sore subject I take it?"  
Nicola closed her eyes, then opened them again to make eye contact with Lex.

"My father's dead," Nicola said so quietly, that she almost thought Lex didn't hear her, especially after she received no response. But after the initial shock passed through his system, Lex managed to choke out a reply.

"I'm sorry," he said in a tone that matched Nicola's.

"So am I," she whispered in response.

More tears fell from her face as good and bad memories regarding her father's life and death rekindled in her mind. Lex scooted his couch-chair so it was directly in front of Nicola's and reached out then placed his hand on her check. With his thumb he wiped away a few of her tears. Nicola closed her eyes again and leaned into his touch.

Suddenly Lex found himself in a foreign situation. Never before had he found himself having to comfort someone, or really wanted to for that matter. But here, now at this moment, he wanted nothing more than the ability to kiss away her tears, her pain, into oblivion. And that's what he did. He slowly moved his lips towards hers until they touched. The kiss was soft and gentle, but just as passionate as the ones they shared days before. Nicola wrapped her arms around Lex's neck and moved to sit on his lap without breaking the kiss. She then deepened the kiss. Suddenly, without trying, Nicola found herself connecting to him, but instead of all his memories rushing through her, she only got ones that involved his mother and father.

While this was happening on the inside of Nicola, in the real world, Nicola had gone slack while in the arms of Lex and during their kiss. Lex didn't know what to do. It was if she passed out during their kiss. He ran his hand on her cheek.

"Nicola, wake up," he commanded, concerned for the brunette in his arms.

When it appeared she wouldn't be conscious anytime soon, he slowly picked her up to carry her somewhere comfortable to lie down. As he headed for the door to the hall, Nicola opened her eyes and looked up at Lex.

"What happened?" she asked.

Lex, startled by her sudden awakening, nearly dropped her, but he quickly gained composure.

"You passed out during the middle of our kiss."

Nicola realized that what happened when she connected to Clark weeks before, must have happened when she connected to Lex, meaning she was out cold for a minute, except this time it was during the middle of a kiss, which was sort of humiliating for Nicola. She was really going to have to talk to her mom about this "connecting business."

"God, I'm so sorry," groaned Nicola. "That must have totally creeped you out."

"Not a problem. It's not like you're the first woman to pass out from one of my kisses," joked Lex.

Nicola rolled her eyes, but slightly giggled in spite herself. She then suddenly realized she was still being held in Lex's arm.

"Um...Not that I don't mind being in your arms, but I guess you can put me down now. I'm sure I'll be fine."

"Oh, right," said Lex slowly moving his arms so that Nicola became upright.

Nicola stood in front of him, inches away from each other.

"Do you know what could have caused your black out?" asked Lex.

"Low blood-sugar level mixed with anxiety?" Nicola said lamely.

"Was that a question or an answer?"  
"Both?"

Lex chuckled.

'Did I just chuckle?' Lex thought to himself. 'What is wrong with me? I never chuckle.'

"I hardly believe it was low blood-sugar levels. Especially after all those cups of sugar-filled coffee you must have consumed at the Beanery."

"I guess," shrugged Nicola.

"So, how are you feeling?" he asked, deciding it was best not to press her on why she might have passed out.

"I'm fine. Don't worry, I won't pass out again, I promise," smiled Nicola.

"So, are you feeling up enough to do this?" asked Lex as he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her into another kiss.

"Definitely," she said just before their lips met. After a couple seconds of tonsil-hockey, she pulled apart from him. "But didn't I come here so we could talk?" laughed Nicola.

"I believe that was the purpose to our rendezvous."

"Well, as much as I'd like to continue what were doing a couple seconds ago, I think we better get back on track."

"Well, I'd prefer doing what we were just doing a couple of seconds ago," said Lex, moving in for another kiss.

Nicola moved face to the side, resulting in Lex getting her cheek instead of her lips.

"That was uncalled for," said Lex.

"If we start that again, we won't be able to stop, and therefore we won't get back on track."

"Fine," sighed Lex.

Nicola kissed Lex on the cheek.

"Good boy," grinned Nicola.

Nicola took Lex's hands and pulled him back to the direction of the chairs. 

"Alright, so where did we leave off?" she asked him as they sat down.

"I believe we left off at a very sensitive subject, resulting in you getting upset."

"Right," replied Nicola, remembering exactly why the kissing started in the first place that night.

"Do you want to talk about it? I heard it helps."

"Did it help you?" Nicola inquired remembering the flashes she got from Lex's memory of his own loss of a parent.

A look of confusion washed over Lex's face, and without even having the ability to read minds, Nicola knew he was wondering how she knew about his loss, and she mentally kicked herself again for speaking without thinking.

"Sorry, I have this uncanny ability to store information and bring it back out to use in unprecedented times. I remember hearing the news of the death of your mother," semi-lied Nicola. Yeah, she did remember hearing about the death of the infamous Lionel Luthor's wife, but that obviously wasn't what brought the thought to mind.

"That was years ago when you were like 9, how could you remember something like that when it didn't even have an affect on you?" asked Lex, curious as why and how she would remember his mother's death.

"Like I said, it's an uncanny ability of mine. If it makes you feel better and make it so I don't have a one up on you, I'll tell you what happened to my dad, and I promise I won't break down into hysterics again."

"You don't have to if you don't want to."

"No, I think it's about time I got some of this off my chest to someone."

"You've never talked to anyone about your father's death before?" he asked, a little touched that she possibly chose him as the first person to let into this part of her.

"I never wanted to rehash it, but I guess now's as good as time as ever to open old wounds." 

"Are you sure?" Lex asked one more time, giving her another chance to back out.

"I'm positive."

Nicola closed her eyes and took a breath. She felt Lex's hands grab hers and she half-smiled at his gesture before continuing.

"I was 10 years old. It was a Saturday and I had a soccer game that day. My dad was late for the game and he was driving over the speed limit, rushing to make it to my game before it ended, but as he turned a corner, a semi jack-knifed off the road and his car crashed head-on into it. He died before we made it to the hospital. I remember being so mad at him on the car ride home from my game. He probably died as I decided to give him the silent treatment. And it's all my fault," she said as another tear slid down her face.

"It's not your fault," said Lex, slightly dismayed that Nicola would even think it was her fault for her father's death.

"Yes it is," she said looking into his eyes. "He was in a hurry to get to **MY** game. If he wasn't so worried about coming to see my stupid game he wouldn't have been going so fast, and he would still be alive today."

"Yes, it's true that your dad was rushing to get to your game, but that just shows how much he loved you. You didn't cause the accident."

"Deep down, I know that, but, as cliched and as it seems, I can't help but feel somewhat responsible for his death. Wow, I just now realized how fucking _Save the Last Dance_ that sounds. Well, except unlike Sara I didn't give up what I enjoyed doing because of it and...Okay, now I'm babbling like an idiot, and you're staring at me like I grew a second head. "

"Sorry, it's just I've never talked to someone who kind of went off to another subject so quickly and talked so fast. And to be honest, I didn't really understand that _Save the Last Dance_ reference."

Now it was Nicola's turn to gawk at Lex like he had an extra head.

"You've never seen _Save the Last Dance_?"

"It's never exactly been on my to do list."

"Well, I'm just going to have care of that soon."

Nicola took another deep breath and released one of Lex's hands so she could brush the last stray tears from her eyes.

"Alright, now that we've finished a walk down depressive lane, why don't we continue to stick to subjects of a lighter feel?" suggested Nicola.

"Such as?"

"I don't know...I'm here so we can get to know each other better, right?"

"Correct."

"So, why don't we move to likes and dislikes?"

"Okay..."

"What's your favorite food?"

"Favorite food?"

"Sorry, I'm a little hungry, so the thought of food sprung into my head."

"Do you want me to cook you something to eat?"

"You cook?"

"What? Surprised are we? Just because I have a cook, doesn't mean I don't have the ability to make myself something."

"I know, Lex. You just keep surprising me every minute."

"Is that a bad thing?"  
"Not at all."

She smiled at him who in turn was smiling right back. They were like this for a few moments before Lex broke the spell.

"Why don't we move to the kitchen?"

"Sure."

Lex stood up while still holding onto Nicola's hand, then helped her up. He then led her out of the library and through the mansion to the kitchen.

"So, what do you want?" asked Lex.

"Anything's fine."

"Alright. Let me see what we have in the pantry then."

"Okay."

Lex left Nicola in the kitchen while he went through a door that led to the pantry. While he searched through the pantry, Nicola took a seat on one of the two high stools that were next to a counter in the middle of the kitchen where the stove and oven were also located. She drummed her fingers on the counter and waited for Lex to emerge from the pantry.

Soon enough, Lex came out of the pantry with a box of some kind of food.

"So, what did ya pick?"

He held up the box and gave it a shake.

"Macaroni and Cheese? Out of all the grub you've probably have in your pantry, you choose Mac n' Cheese?"

"Not just any kind of Mac n' cheese, Kraft's Macaroni and Cheese.

"Why?"

"Believe it or not, Lively, macaroni and cheese happens to be one of my favorite foods of all time."

"Wow, never in my wildest dreams would I have guess the refined Alexander Luthor would pick macaroni and cheese as his all time favorite dishes. That's cute."

"And what is your favorite food, missy? Something sophisticated I imagine?"

"Hardly. It's a tie between Hawaiian pizza and orange chicken. Both covered in hot sauce of course.

"Oh, of course," teased Lex.

"Don't mock me. I like things spicy. "

"I wasn't mocking you."

Nicola stood up and then grabbed one of the pots that were hanging above the stove. She then walked over to the sink and filled the pot with water. As she placed the pot on the stove, Lex turned the heat on for the specific burner.

"Wasn't I supposed to be the one cooking you something?"

"This is hardly cooking Lex. This is boiling water, adding pasta, draining the pasta, then mixing three ingredients in with the noodles. Not exactly something they'd cover at the Cordon Bleu."

"Ah but it does take some skill. I mean, just the wrong amount of milk, and you're screwed. Instead of macaroni and cheese, you could end up with cheese soup that has noodles in it."  
Nicola rolled her eyes, but smiled at Lex.

"So, what brought on the mac n' cheese obsession?"

Lex's eyes darkened as he remembered the past.

"When I was little my mom used to make it for me ever afternoon after I got home for school."

"Every afternoon? Didn't you get sick of it?" asked Nicola.

Lex, a little surprised he didn't get the sympathy card or an uncomfortable vibe from her when he mentioned his mom like he would have with most people, but he supposed he shouldn't be surprised because he learned with Nicola that you should always expect the unexpected.

"Not at all. I couldn't get enough of it."

"Okay, so this is a totally random question, but for some reason it just kind of popped into my head. Who decided to call you Lex?"

"It was my father who started calling me Lex. My mother never called me it though. I was always Alexander to her."

"Do you like going by Lex? I mean out of all the nicknames to come out of Alexander, I would have chosen Xander. But maybe it's because of the fact I'm a huge Buffy fanatic."

"Xander, huh? Interesting choice. Well, I've been called Lex for so long, I just kind of stuck with it."

"Did you father start calling you Lex so you'd have the same initials as him. You know, LL?"

"Possibly. Who knows what my father's motives ever are. I sure as hell never do."

"I don't think any will ever understand the essence that is Lionel Luthor."

There was a pause in their conversation as Lex put the macaroni noodles into the boiling water, then continued their talk.

"So, why did you parents name you Nicola?" asked Lex. "It's Italian, isn't it?"

"Yeah. When my mom was pregnant with me, my parents weren't, um, financially stable, I guess you could put it. Anyway, they encountered an elderly couple whom out of the kindness of their hearts let them stay with them until they got back on their feet. And to make a long story short, the woman was named Nicola, so my parents decided to name me after her in respect," lied Nicola.

Man, I really need to stop lying. But I guess I can't exactly tell him the whole truth now can I?' Nicola thought to herself.

"Nice story."

"I thought so. Although, I wouldn't have minded if they had decided to name me something else."

"You could always go by your middle name."

"That's never going to happen."

"Don't tell me it's worse than your first name."

"Worse isn't exactly how I'd put. Weirder would be the word I'm looking for."

Now Lex was intrigued.

"What's your middle name?"

"Tititana."

"As in the fairy queen?" asked Lex with an amused smile on his face.

"Bingo."

"That's cute. Totally works for you too."

"Gee thanks. What's your middle name?"  
"Joseph."

"Really? That's my brother's name."

"Really?"  
"Yeah. It suits him better though."  
"Probably. So how many siblings do you have?"  
"Just two. Joey and my sister Lindsay."  
"How old are they?"  
"Joey is five and Lindsay is nine."

There was a pause before Lex said anything else.

"I used to have a little brother. His name was Julian. He died a few months after he was born."

"Oh."

Lex took note she didn't say she was sorry again, but didn't say anything.

During the conversation Lex had been occasionally stirring the macaroni, and now he was draining it in a strainer in the sink. While he did that, Nicola stuck her head into the fridge to get the milk and butter.

"Where do you keep the measuring cups?"

"It's to your left, third drawer down."

Nicola turned to her left, and opened the third drawer, and sure enough, a set of measuring cups were inside. She measured the correct amount of milk as Lex placed the pot back onto a stove burner. Lex emptied the packet of powder cheese, and then Nicola poured the milk on top of it.

"Knives?"

"The drawer above the ones the measuring cups were in."

Nicola took a knife out of the drawer and cut the correct amount of butter, and then placed it into the pot. Lex had a wooden spoon in his hand and started to mix all the ingredients together. Soon, Lex mixed everything together and held out a forkful of the finished product for Nicola to taste.

"Yummy," Nicola said after she took a bite. "We make a good team Lex."

Lex took a bite of the macaroni and cheese.

"I thoroughly agree with you."

Nicola stuck her fork back into the pot and ate more straight from it.

"Don't you want a bowl?" asked Lex.

"Nah, for some reason food tastes better straight from the pot."

"Okay..."

"So, since we started to talk about favorites, what's your favorite, um, movie?"

"_Scarface_."

"_Scarface_? Why is every guy's favorite movie _Scarface_ or The Godfather?"  
"Al Pachino is the man, that's why."

"The man? Right."  
"And what's your favorite movie?"

"_The Big Hit_."

"Never heard of it."  
"It's a Mark Walberg movie. There's action, romance, drama, fighting. What' not to love about it?"

"Mark Walberg? You mean the guy from that new version of Planet of the Apes who used to be referred to as "Marky Mark?"  
"One in the same."  
"Now that's hilarious."

"Okay, don't make fun of my favorite movie alright? Mark did a great job at portraying a nice, sweet guy who just so happened to be a hired assassin."

"Right."

"You know what, one of these days, I'm going to force you to watch that movie, among some of my other favorites."

"I'd like to see you try."

"Oh, trust me, I have my ways."

"So, moving on. Favorite book?"

"See, by changing the subject you are admitting my ability of persuasion."

"I am not admitting anything, I'm just moving on to something of a little more interesting."

"Whatever you say..."

"Favorite book?" Lex repeated.

"I don't have one," replied Nicola.

"You don't have one?"

"Hey, sometimes I have the right to be indecisive. Anyway, I don't have a favorite book, I have a favorite book series."

"Favorite book series?"

"Yeah, it's called _Fearless._"

"_Fearless_?"

"Yeah."

"What's it about?"  
"There's this girl named Gaia who doesn't have the fear gene."

Nicola saw Lex give her a skeptical look.

"I know, I know. Fear probably isn't a gene, but in the book it works okay?"

"Okay."

"Anyway, it's about her trials and tribulation of her senior year. She's lives with her foster parents because her mom died and her dad disappeared right after that. She's in love with a guy who goes out with her arch nemesis, her best friend is this guy in a wheel chair who is in love with her, and she has the ability to kick some major ass. Basically, it has every element a teenage girl could want."

"Soundsinteresting."

"It is. So, what's your favorite book?"

"Winston Churchill's _Leaves of Grass_."

"Isn't that a collection of poetry?"  
"Yes, so?"

"That doesn't count."

"Yes, it does. You asked me what my favorite book is. It's not my fault my favorite book is a book of poetry."

Nicola rolled her eyes.

"Fine. Maybe I should have asked you what your favorite novel was."

"Probably."

"So, what kind of music does the illustrious Lex Luthor like to listen to besides Inubus?" she asked, jumping to another subject again. " We never exactly established if you were the classical kind of guy or not."

"Although I do like to relax to the soothing sounds of classical music every now and then, I've always been more into alternative rock."

"Let me guess, you were a Nirvana fan in high school right?"

"Yes. Although I suppose I didn't look like one."

"No surprise there. I'm sure your extravagant private schools frowned upon the grunge look."

"You'd be right to assume so."

"So, were you all suits back in the day, too?"

"Only at school, I had to wear one as my uniform. But when I wasn't in school it was all Polo and Khakis."

"What, no jeans and t-shirt?"

"Not in this lifetime."

"I don't know, I wouldn't mind seeing you in James Dean apparel. You know, tight jeans, white t-shirt, leather jacket. Very sexy."

"As much as I'd want to fulfill your _Rebel Without a Cause_ fantasies, that probably won't happen in this century."

"Not even if I said pretty please?"

Nicola gave Lex her best pout, then smiled at him.

"Not even if there was a cherry on top."

"Awe, well you're no fun," frowned Nicola.

They set aside their mac & cheese and now found themselves sitting on the stools facing each other.

"So, what are your plans for this weekend?"

"I have a business meeting in Metropolis on Sunday."

"What a coincidence. Chloe, Pete, Clark, and I are going to Metropolis on Sunday."

"Really? Well, since I'm going to Metropolis anyway, would you guys like to ride with me in the limo?"

"That'd be great, but are you sure you wanna be trapped in a limo with four teenagers for three hours?"

"I highly doubt it will be as torturous as you make it sound."

"You say that now, but wait until after the first half hour, then we'll see who was right. I mean, come on, how many do times do you think the three musketeers have been in a limo? You know they're going to drive you crazy by pushing every button or talk about insignificant, inconsequential teenage topics."

"Insignificant and inconsequential mean the same thing."  
"I know; I was just trying to get my point across."

Lex looked at Nicola skeptically.

"While I am sure that they'll probably push every button in the limo or talk about teenage issues, but I'm also sure I can handle whatever comes our way. Besides, I know that's not what you're really worried about that."

"Really? And what am I worried about?"

"I'm not sure. You tell me."

"Alright," sighed Nicola. "First it's the whole matter of bringing up the whole "you giving us a lift in your limo" topic with my friends."

"What do you mean?"  
"Don't pull the innocent act, you know what I'm talking about. I can't exactly go up to them and go, "Hey guys, while I was at Lex's on Friday night after the game we started to discuss our plans, you know between the making out and all, and he informed me that he was going to Metropolis on Sunday, which is really strange because that's exactly where we were planning to go on Sunday, too. Anyway, after I informed him of our plans, he offered that we could ride in the limo with him since we were all headed in the same direction anyway." Yeah, I really see myself casually slipping that into a conversation in the near future."

Lex looked amazed that she managed to say all that in one breath.

"I see your point. Well then, when Clark comes here with the produce tomorrow I will bring Sunday up, how's that?"

"Sounds good, I guess."

"So, what is the other problem?"

"Other problem?"

"You said "first off." That implies there is more to follow. What is the second thing?"

""Okay," hesitated Nicola. "My second problem is, I'm not sure I could stand being in small quarters with you for three hours and not be able to do this.""

Nicola stood up, and soon her lips found themselves on Lex's neck, then moved up to follow his jaw line, then ended up on his lips. After a couple minutes, she pulled away from Lex so they could both get some air.

"I could understand how that could rise as a problem."

"See?" Nicola mock pouted.

"You could always arrive early on Sunday and we could get it out of our systems prior to the drive."

"I don't know, that could take a long time," Nicola grinned suggestively, biting slightly down on her bottom lip.

"Well then, why don't we get a head start?""  
"That's not a bad idea."

Lex leaned towards Nicola and put his lips on hers. The kiss was fierce and fiery, making Nicola weak in the knees and glad she had him for support. Lex stood up from the stool he was on, then placed his hands on Nicola's waist to bring her closer to him. She had her hands behind Lex's head, smothering him with more hot kisses. Soon Nicola felt herself and Lex walking towards a familiar room in which they had been in together over a week ago. Lex's lips left hers and trailed down her check to her neck. She felt Lex's hands slip up the back of her sweater and onto her bare, lower back. A shiver tingled through her spine and she heard him say something about stairs, then her ankle backed into a hard surface. Nicola glanced down and saw the first step to the staircase. She slowly moved up the stairs as not to trip up them. When they got to the top of the staircase, Lex placed his lips back on hers and they made their way towards Lex's bedroom. Soon, Nicola felt her back make contact with a door. As she was sandwiched between the door and Lex, she placed her hands on Lex's chest. One of Lex's warm hands left her back and opened the door with it.

When they got through the door, Lex paused to kick the door closed, then they continued on their path. They made their way for the bed. Before reaching their destination, Lex felt Nicola unbuttoning his shirt, exposing his bare chest. Lex broke apart from their kiss and raised an eyebrow. Nicola placed her hands on Lex's bare chest and moved them up to his shoulders.

"What are you doing?"

"What does it look I'm doing, I'm taking your shirt off for you."  
"Yes, but why?"

"Because I wanted to do this."

Nicola left her hands on his shoulders, then leaned forward and started to suck on his neck. She then slowly moved down to his collar bone, making Lex close his eyes in pleasure and lose track of his point. As she did this, she slipped her hands underneath the collar of Lex's shirt, and pushed the shirt off of him. She moved from the collarbone down to his chest, then down to his abs. Lex decided he better speak up now before they went too fast and he wouldn't have the power to stop from going all the way.

"What about your "no sex" policy?" Lex blurted out.

Lex felt her lips leave his abs. She was standing full upright now, glaring into his eyes.

"It's still in tact. For God's sake, just because a girl takes a guy's shirt off doesn't mean she's going do him right then and there. I mean there are a few things people can do together to get hot and heavy without having sex or giving each otheroral pleasure." 

She mumbled the last two words, and Lex almost didn't hear her.

"Did you say what I think you said?" Lex choked out.

"No?"

"There's with the answering that sounds like a question again."

"Look Lex, if you don't want to do this or whatever, I'll just leave. I understand."

Nicola started to walk past Lex, but was stopped when a hand grabbed her shoulder, then turned around. When she spun and face Lex, he placed his hand behind her head, then pulled her into another kiss.

"I do want this," breathed Lex after he pulled apart from her. "I want you."

Nicola smiled at Lex and went in for a kiss.

Nicola felt Lex's hands tug up at her shirt. She pulled her lips away from Lex's and raised an eyebrow.

"Hey, you took my shirt off, I should get something."

Nicola rolled her eyes. She hesitated, but then decided it's basically like wearing a bikini top to the beach, so she then yanked her shirt over head, revealing her black bra. As Nicola tossed her shirt to the side, Lex found his eyes drawn to her chest. Hey, he was a guy.

Nicola cleared her throat.

"My eye's are up here."

Lex brought his eyes back to hers.

"Right."

He wrapped his arms around her waist then lowered his lips to hers. She placed her arms around his neck, intensifying the kiss as they slowly made their way towards the bed. Soon Nicola felt her legs touch the side of the bed. She lifted one leg up, then freed one of her hands to slip off one of her sneakers. She then did the same with the other shoe. Lex lowered Nicola on the bed without breaking the kiss, and Nicola felt the silk sheets of the bed touch her bare skin. With Nicola lying down on the bed, Lex made a trail of kisses down her neck to her upper chest that was above the bra. Nicola gasped a moan. She placed her hands behind Lex's head and started to gently carress it.

After a couple of minutes, Lex's lip trailed back up her collar bone to her neck, then finally back to her lips. Nicola wrapped her arms around Lex bringing him closer to her as the kissed.

They made out on the bed for a few hours until they wore themselves out. They decided to take a breather, maybe even get a little rest. Nicola snuggled up against Lex, placing her head on his chest. She listened to Lex's breathing and was entranced by the soothing sound. Slowly, she started to feel sleepy and realized it must be pretty late. She scooted over to the side and saw that it was almost 2 in the morning. She completated whether she should go to Chloe's now or get some sleep in Lex's arms.

"Lex," she whispered.

There was no answer. She lowered her head towards Lex's faced and realized he was asleep. She kissed him on the cheek and then snuggled into his chest again.

"Night Lex," she whispered before slowly falling into her own slumber.

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TBC, soon I hope. Thanks for bearing with me. Apologies for those of you who were sick of Nicola/Lex interactions. I promise there will be less of it in the future. So, what did you all think? What would you like to see in future chapters? I need some ideas.


	8. Morning After

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Rating: PG-13

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Disclaimer: Still don't obtain ownership of Smallville. Damn.

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Author's Notes: I'm so sorryI'm like so freakin' slow at writing. It just that I have all these ideas in my head, but I have no idea how to get from point a to point b, you know? Anyway, I managed to get out this much, but alas, I'm still not at the Rogue point of the story. Lex may seem a little out of character, more of a softy, I suppose. Sorry about that, too.

Please, be kind and review. Negative, positive, whatever. Feedback is my vice. Thank you to the reviews I got for the last chapter: Ali, Kraven, and kryptongal. Much appreciated.

Anyway, back to the story:

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Slowly Nicola's eyes fluttered open. She startled at the feeling of an arm wrapped around her then took a second to remember where she was. She nestled into Lex's chest and felt his arms wrap around her tighter. She laid still in his arm for many minutes when she decided to check the clock to see what time it was. 5:35 AM. Even though she would rather stay in Lex's arm for another couple hours, she knew she should do the responsible thing and make her way to Chloe's. She whispered to Lex, but he wasn't waking up.

"Lex, wake up," she whispered again, shaking him slightly.

Lex's eyes slowly began to open.

"What is it?" Lex asked groggily.

"I have to go."

"Why?"

"Because I told Chloe that I'd be at her house before morning."

"But I need your body heat."

"Cute. Look, as much as I want to stay, I have to go."

She kissed him on the lips, but as she was going to back up to get off the bed, he wrapped his arms around her, bringing her in for another kiss.

"You're really making it really difficult to leave," Nicola said between kisses.

"That was the point."

Nicola squirmed out his arms, then hopped out of bed. She grabbed her shirt off the ground and pulled it over her head. As she finished putting on the shirt, then started to put on her shoes, Lex sluggishly sat up in bed.

"Let me walk you to your car."

"No, that's okay. You go back to sleep."

Nicola walked up to the bed where Lex was.

"Are you sure?"

"Positive," smiled Nicola.

She leaned over the bed and kissed Lex quickly on the lips.

"I'll see you later?" said Nicola.

"Of course."

Nicola turned and walked towards the door as Lex lowered his head and drifted back to sleep. She walked through the dark, empty house and found her way to the front door. Soon she found herself next to her car and opened it. She started the car and drove off to Chloe's house.

Twenty minutes later she was pulling up in front of Chloe's house that was in the more suburban part of Smallville. She grabbed her backpack from the back seat, then made her way to the tree that gave her access to Chloe's window. She slung the backpack on her shoulders then pulled herself onto the lowest branch of the tree. After a couple of minutes she managed to make it to in front of Chloe's window. She used her telekinetic powers to open the window then she climbed through it.

In the dark, she saw Chloe curled up in her bed. On the floor she saw that Chloe had left out a pillow and sleeping bag for her to use. She unrolled the bag and tossed the pillow at the opening. After she changed into the pajamas she had packed into her bag, she climbed into the sleeping bag. It was probably going to be another three hours before Chloe would wake up, so Nicola knew she'd have to find some way to keep herself busy while not disturbing Chloe's slumber. After a few minutes of thinking of what she should do, Nicola decided dreamwalking was her best bet.

'But whose dream should I walk in on?' Nicola thought to herself.

Instantly Lex popped into her mind. She closed her eyes and concentrated on entering the dreamplane. Seconds later, Nicola found herself surrounded by dream spheres. She glanced around and whistled for Lex's sphere. She had summoned the sphere a few times in the last couple of days since her last visit with Lex. While she had no plans of going out in the real world to seek Lex out, she did stop by his dreamland. The sphere came to her and she held out her hands, letting the sphere expand. As the sphere became bigger, she peered through it.

She saw that the dream took place in a large kitchen. The first people she saw were a short, bald person and a woman with red hair. When the sphere became big enough for her to be able to step though, she was able to see that it was a boy and woman. She then realized it was a young Lex and his mother. It wasn't until she stepped through to take a better look when she discovered that a present day Lex was also in the dream, watching the scene unfold, too.

Young Lex was slouched over the counter on one of the stools. He looked about 9 or 10. His mother was at the stove, cooking something.

"So, how was your day Alexander?" asked Lex's mother.

"Horrible. The other kids made fun of me, AGAIN. You'd think after going to school with me for a year like this," Lex said, pointing at his bald head. "They'd realize that the bald jokes were getting old."

"Alexander. I'm so sorry you have to go through that."

"It's not your fault mom. I mean, you aren't the one who makes the kids act all dumb."

Lillian smiled at her son.

"I know sweetie, but I'm a mom, and I always feel responsible for my child's well being."

Nicola watched as Lex's mom spoon some Mac & Cheese into a bowl for young Lex and place it in front of him.

"Thanks mom."

"You're welcome."

Nicola glanced away from little Lex and his mom, and looked at present day Lex who was smiling at his past. She contemplated for a second whether she should talk to him or not, but she figured it wouldn't be too weird for someone to dream about the person they saw a few hours before, so she walked over to Lex.

"Your mom really loved you," Nicola said to him.

Lex turned and looked a little startled that someone else was watching him and his mom. After a second, he realized who it was.

"Yeah," was all he replied, then he turned and watched his mom again.

After a couple minutes, he started to talk again.

"I really miss her."

"I know. I don't blame you. She seemed really nice."

"She was." Lex paused. "Sometimes I wished it was my father who had died instead of her. Then maybe my life would have turned out differently."

Nicola knew dream Lex would reveal more of what he felt than real Lex, so she knew it was would be wrong to dig for more information out of him.

"Well, I'm here for you Lex. Whenever you need me."

"I know and I'm glad."

Nicola gave Lex a long hug, then kissed him.

"I've gotta go."

"You're leaving me."

"For now. But I'll see you later."

"Promise?"

"Yes, I promise."

"Okay. I'll see you later then."

Nicola kissed him on the cheek.

"Bye."

"Bye."

Nicola started to walk toward the edge of the dream, then turned to look at Lex again and saw that he was watching his dream again. She turned then walked out of the dream. She found herself in the dreamplane once more. She knew she still had a few more hours to kill, so she decided she might as well pop into someone else's dream.

__

I wonder what my buddy Clark is dreaming about?

She called for Clark's dream orb and seconds later it floated to her. She let the orb expand then stepped through it. She saw that she was standing in the bleachers at Smallville High. The bleachers were packed, but she found herself a seat in the front row. It appeared to be a football game that they were attending. She looked around to see if she could find Clark, but didn't see him.

"Here are your Smallville Crows!" Nicola hears the announcer, well announce.

She saw a bunch of the Smallville football players run out of the locker room area and through a paper banner the Smallville cheerleaders were holding.

"Man Clark, your dream kind of sucks," she said outloud to herself. "Something good better happen soon."

As if on cue, the announcer says, "And now, Smallville's new star quarterback, Clark Kent!!!!!"

The crowd around her stands up and starts cheering loudly for Clark. Nicola stands up with them and watches as Clark "the football star" jogs out of the locker room entrance and onto the field. Clark receives high fives from his fellow football players before stopping in front of a cheerleader. After taking a better look Nicola realizes the cheerleader is none other than the lustrous, once pom-pom princess Lana Lang.

While she couldn't hear exactly what they were saying, Nicola was sure it was something along the lines of:

"Good luck Clark. I know you'll be great."

"Thanks Lana."

Smiles, smiles.

Lana then stood on her tiptoes to give Clark a kiss on the cheek. Clark's mouth spread out into a large grin before he put his helmet on and ran off to the field to start the game.

"I'm sorry Clark, but this dreamwell it kind of blows."

With that, Nicola snapped her fingers, and the football stadium disappeared and changed into a tropical, sandy beach. In the middle of the deserted beach stood football star Clark Kent, looking pretty confused. Nicola realized her pajamas kind of clashed with the scenery, so she transformed them into a Hawaiian print, spaghetti-strapped dress and made herself have some thong sandals on. After conjuring a piña colada that was in a coconut shell cup (and had a colorful straw and one of those little paper umbrellas) into her hand, she walked the short distance between her and Clark. His back was turned to her.

"Hey there, Clarky boy, what's up?"  
Clark spun around and blinked. He then rubbed his eyes to make sure the image in front of him was real.

"Nicola?" said Clark.

"In the flesh. Okay, maybe in your dreams would have been better, and accurate."

"In my dreams?"

"Yes Clark, your dreams."

"This is my dream?" asked a perplexed Clark

"Correct."

"So you're telling me that my being the football star at Smallville High"  
"All a figment of your imagination," Nicola finished for him.

"And this?" asked Clark, motioning to the beach that surrounded him.

"That'd be my brilliant doing. Sorry for intervening in your dream, but I had the feeling that it was one of your recurring ones, so I figured a change of scenery would do you some good. Hence the tropical locale."

"Okay"

"UmmClark, your outfit, well, it doesn't really work with the beach vibe."

Clark glanced down at his football uniform.

"Well, I didn't bring a change of clothes."

"Clark. This is a dream, remember? Skip logic; go with imagination. You know that saying, I think, therefore I am'?"

"Yeah, so?"

"Well, think about what you want to wear, then your clothes will change."

Clark looked at Nicola skeptically.

"Trust me Clark, I am the dream master here."

"Fine"

Clark concentrated hard and imagined himself in some surfer shorts and a white wifebeater tank top, then right before his eyes his football uniform morphed into his desired attire. His eyes widened in surprised and then it affirmed in his mind that this indeed was a dream.

"Alright if this is a dream, are you a part of it, or did you decide to crash on it?"

"I decided to crash on it. Sorry Clark, I was bored, and besides, you're going to be up soon to start your morning chores, so you're only going to be missing out on like a half hour of dreams anyway. I know you farmers' saying, "Early to bed, early to rise, makes a" okay I don't know the rest, but I think it ends with healthy and wise."

"RightSo why are you here?"

"Clark, I only need like two hours of sleep a night. I need something to keep me entertained for the other 6 hours of sleep most other people get."

"So you come and interrupt my dream?"

"Hey, this was a good intervention. I mean, how many times could you possible want to see yourself be the quarterback to Lana's head cheerleader."

A blush spread across Clark's cheeks.

"So, how was your date?" Clark asked, trying to change the subject.

"Jeez for the kagillionith time, it wasn't a date."

She took a sip of her piña colada before making two lounge chairs for her and Clark appear.

"Wanna a drink?" she asked him.

"Sure," said Clark hesitantly.

Between the two lounge chairs, Nicola made a small table that had the same drink she had materialize. After Nicola laid back on one of the lounge chairs, Clark followed in example and did the same on the other one. Clark grabbed the drink on the table and took a sip of it.

"Thanks. This is pretty good, you know, for a dream drink."

"Yeah, the mind does wonders."

"You do this a lot don't you?"

"Go into people's dreams? Yeah."

"It seems fun. Have you ever gone into a dream and wished you had just stayed out of it?"

"Too many times to count."

There was a pause before Clark decided to go back on a previous unanswered subject.

"So, back to your date."

"You mean my non-date?"

"Right, non-date," replied Clark, not believing it for a second. "Who was it?"

"My God, you and Chloe are two freaking peas in the proverbial pod," sighed Nicola. "It was just some guy, can we please leave it at that? I don't harass you about who you see, do I?"

"That's because I don't "see" anyone."

"That's beside the point. You know what I mean."

"Fine, no more questions about your mystery guy."

"Thank you. So how was the rest of the party?"

"Kind of boring. Nothing beat your assault on Darien."

"It wasn't an assault. It was pop. Besides, I'm sure he's over it by now."

"I hope you're right."

"I am."

"So, have you been in anyone else's dream tonight?"

"Yeah, someone from Metropolis I know," semi-lied Nicola.

"Really? Anything interesting?"

"Not really."

"Well, no wonder you came into my dream."

"Um, it's not like your dream was much better."

"Hey! I happen to like my dreams."

"Of course you do, Clark."

"So, now that I'm aware this is just a dream, I can alter it any way I want?"

"Yeah, pretty much."

"So if I wanted Lana to appear?"

"Hi Clark. Nicola," they heard a familiar voice say from behind them.

They turn slightly and see a version of Lana Lang that was clad in a bikini top and some shorts.

"Lana," replied Clark, slightly startled it actually worked.

Nicola crouched over and whispered to Clark.

"Jeez Clark, next time could you keep your hormones in check?"

"II wasn't trying to get her wearing _that_."

"Sure, sure, whatever you say there Clark."

"What are you guys talking about?" Lana interrupted them.

"Nothing. Nothing at all," replied Nicola. "Hey Lana, the water looks nice out there. Why don't you take a swim? We'll be out there to join you in a second, okay?"

"Alright. But don't take too long guys."

"We won't," replied Clark.

With that, dream Lana ran out to the water and waded into the ocean.

"Well, I guess I'll leave you to the rest of your dream. Have fun with your dream girl. Don't do anything I wouldn't do."

"Okay. See you later."

"Bye."

As Clark jogged down to the water to join Lana, Nicola downed the rest of her piña colada. Granted it was an imaginary drink, but it still tasted pretty damn good. When she drank the rest of her drink, she tossed it aside, then walked to the edge of the dream and exited Clark's dreamland. When she found herself on the dreamplane again, she contemplated if she should jump into someone else's dream or go back to the real world. After a little deliberation, she decided it was time to go back to the real world.

She slowly opened her eyes and found herself in Chloe's room. The sun was breaking through the partially cloudy sky and shown through the window. She glanced at the alarm clock next to Chloe's bed and saw that it was 7:23, which meant she spent almost an hour and a half in dreamland, although it hadn't seemed like it. She had a little over a half an hour before her mom expected her to come home. She looked over at Chloe and saw that she was still asleep in her bed.

She rolled the sleeping bag back up then placed it and the pillow on the couch chair that sat in the corner of the room. After she changed into another outfit, she walked over to the Chloe's bed and loomed over her sleeping form. She gently shook Chloe awake.

"Ah!" half-shouted Chloe.

Her eyes blinked open and then glared up at the person who dared to wake her up.

"Nicola? What time is it?"  
"7:30."

"7:30?! Are you suicidal? Why are you waking me up at this un-Godly hour?"

"Sorry to interrupt your beauty sleep, but I just wanted to let you know before I left that, yes I did show up, and I wanted to thank you for remembering to leave the window unlocked, oh and for the sleeping bag and pillow."

"Not a problem. What time did you get in last night?"

"Let's just say, really late."  
"Okay."

"Well, I better get going. My mom really needed the car this morning for some reason. I'll let you get back to your sleep."

"Thank you, I really need it since I was so rudely interrupted."

"I said I was I sorry."

"You're forgiven. But you better get out of here so I can sleep or I just might change my mind."

"All right. Talk to you later then."

"See ya."

With that, Nicola slung her back over her shoulders, then opened the window and climbed out. She slowly made her way down the tree, then hopped off the lowest branch to the ground. She walked to her car, got in, then headed for home. When she arrived home, she found her mom, brother, and sister in the kitchen eating breakfast.

"Hey family."

"Good morning Nicola. How was Chloe's?"

"Fun. We had a Kevin Smith marathon."

"Kevin Smith?"

"You know, Kevin Smith? The director slash writer slash actor? As in Silent Bob? As in Jay and Silent Bob? As in two key characters in the movies Clerks, Chasing Amy, Mallrats, Dogma, and the most recent Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back?"  
"Oh right, that Kevin Smith, how silly of me to not know who you were talking about."

"Anyway, it was all junk food and movies."

"That's nice."

"So, where's Brad?"

"He's out tending the horses. Contrary to belief, we still do have a ranch to run."

"Right."

"So, what are your plans for today? I was hoping you could come with us to the Edge City Mall to buy some winter coats."

"Winter coats?"

"Yes, I hear it's going to get pretty cold soon."

"Yeah, well, as much as I'd just love to join the family on a outing, I can't. I work at 12."  
"Oh, that's too bad."

"I knowdarn."

"Well, while I take the kids to the mall, Brad was planning on taking a look at the junk yard in Edge City for a car for you to repair."

"Really? That's great."

"What's great?"

Brad had slipped through the back door and only heard what Nicola had said.

"That you're finding me a car to fix in Edge City," replied Nicola.

"Oh, that. So, any kind of a car in particular you want me to keep my eyes peeled for?"

"A 2002 Lexus Luxury Convertible?"

"Funny."  
"Hey, a girl can dream. Actually, technically I could alter whatever car to the Lexus, but I suppose it would be suspicious to the DMV."

"Probably."

"I don't know. Jeeps are cool. You know, the kind you can put the top down."

"Don't you think you're buying into the Roswell alien thing a little too much?" Lindsay asked her older sister.

"Hey squirt," she glared at her sister. "Just because they had it in the book and show doesn't mean that's the reason I like Jeeps, thank you very much."

"Okay, so a Jeep," said Brad, breaking up their argument. "Back up choice?"

"Jetta."

"Okay. Well, I'm going to buy one and make sure it has every part that you need to manipulate, regardless of whether or not it works or what condition it is in, then I'll have it towed back later today."

"Won't it look suspicious if you have a wrecked car towed into town, then miraculously the next day I have a car?"

"I suppose you have a point."

"How about this; you tell the guy at the wreckage place to leave the car outside of the junk yard, then tonight, I'll orb there, fix up the car, then drive it home?"

"I don't know, won't he be suspicious if I ask him to leave it outside the yard?"

"Not if you tell him that you're having someone tow it later that night after they are closed."

"Well, that sounds plausible."

"Great. Then after I get home from work, you can tell me what time I can go there so it's safe, then I'll do the rest."  
"Sounds good."

"Well, now that that's settled, I'm going to fix myself something to eat. What time are you guys leaving?"

"As soon as the little ones are ready."

"Hey, I'm not little. I'm 10," argued Lindsay.

"Fine. Then be a big girl and help Joey get ready for the car ride."

"Fine. Come on Joey, let's go upstairs," sighed Lindsay, grabbing Joey's hand, helping him down from his chair.

"I'm going to go wash up, then once the kids are ready, we can leave," Brad told Juliet.

"Alright."

While Brad started to follow the two kids upstairs, Nicola started make some new coffee in the coffee maker, then glanced through the cupboards and found some Cinnamon Toast Crunch to eat. After she began to eat her the bowl of cereal she made for herself, she remembered to bring up the topic of connecting with people.

"Hey mom. I have a question."

"Yes?"

"Now, this is totally random, but I was wondering about our power to connect with people."

"Yes, what about it?" asked Juliet, concerned.

"Well, is it possible for one to connect with another person without trying?"

"Not usually. In most instances one has to will it to happen. Why has it happened to you?"

"Yeah, a couple of times with some of my new friends. I kind of blacked out for a few seconds, according to them."

"Strange. Well, maybe it's another element to your powers that's different than everyone else."

"I suppose."

"If it happens again, let me know."  
"Will do."

"We're ready mommy," they heard Joey say.

They turned to see that Joey and Lindsay were out of their PJs and were in a change of clothes.

"Great, now we just have to wait for your dad," Juliet told Joey.

"Okay."

"Lindsay, why don't you and Joey play outside until we're ready to go?"

"Alright." Lindsay grabbed Joey's hand again and started walking outside. "Come on Joey, we can play hide and seek. You can hide first."

"You know she's not going to look for him right away, right?" Nicola said to her mom who was pouring herself a fresh cup of coffee.

"Yeah, but it's not going to take Brad that long to get ready."

"Whatever you say. Oh, there's another thing I wanted to ask you about."

"What's that?"

"Well, see, Chloe, Pete, Clark, and I kind of wanted to go to Metropolis tomorrow for the day. Would that be okay?"

"I dunno, Metropolis is a pretty dangerous place, especially for four teenagers."

"Mom, you know perfectly well that we're responsible. Besides I grew up in Metropolis. So did Chloe. We know how to handle ourselves in the 'big city'."

" What time do you plan to leave?"  
"About 9."

"And you'd be home?"

"Around 10."

"10? Don't you think that's a little late?"

"Mom, we will probably arrive in Metropolis at 12. To be back at 10, we have to leave around 7. That gives us approximately 7 hours to wreak havoc on Metropolis. That's not even half a day."

Her mom contemplated the thought for a minute.

"Alright, I suppose that'd be okay. Who would be driving, because you can't have the Exterra all day?"

"Lex Luthor's limo driver," she replied casually.

Her mom practically choked on the coffee she was drinking.

"Run that by me again? I think I heard you wrong because I thought you said Lex Luthor's limo driver."

"That's because that's what I did say."

"And had this come about?"

"Well, you know that Lex is friends with Clark. He happens to be going to Metropolis tomorrow morning for work anyway, so he offered to let us ride up and back with him in the limo. Anyway, is it all right if I go?"

"Sure, that's fine."

"Thanks."

Brad finally came back downstairs into the kitchen.

"Ready to go?" Brad asked Juliet.  
"I've been ready to go, the question is, are you _finally_ ready to go?"

"Yes."

"Well, Joey and Lindsay are outside playing hide and seek, so let's find Joey, then we can get a move on."

"Okay."

Brad walked out the back porch to start calling for Joey.

"We'll be back around 5, which means we'll probably be home before you will be. Are you going to get to work okay?"

"Yeah. Walking into town won't kill me. Hopefully."

"Well, if you need anything, we have the cell, okay?"

"Alright. See you later, then."

"Bye."

With that, her mom left the house in search for Joey so they could leave. Nicola cleaned out her bowl and placed it in the dishwasher, then took her bags downstairs. She then decided to go upstairs to take a shower. After taking the shower then changing in her room, she heard the muffled sound of her cell phone ringing. She walked over the purse having a feeling it was probably Chloe. She took the cell out of her purse and glanced at the screen, and sure enough her caller ID said that it was her.

"Hey Chloe," she said into the phone.

"How did you know it was me?"

"Well, it's almost 10, I knew you'd probably be up and remembered that I didn't really give you much info on my last night, so the call was inevitable. That and the invention called caller ID helped me out."

"Right, anyway, do you wanna meet at the Beanery have some coffee, and then you can give me all the yummy details of your night?"

"Negative. No car."

"Then I'll pick you up."

"Great."

"Okay, I'll be there in a few."

"Alright. See you."

Nicola hung up the phone and placed it back into her purse. She decided to put her work clothes in a bag to take with her so she could just drop it off in her locker at work if she decided to go somewhere before she had to work. After she got her stuff together, she grabbed the bag and walked up the stairs and went outside onto the front porch to wait for Chloe.

After about 10 minutes passed, Chloe's red Ford Falcon pulled up her driveway and she made her way down to it. She opened the door then climbed in.

"Hey," greeted Nicola.

"Hi," replied Chloe as she pulled away from the house and back onto the main road. "So are you going to start to spill the details now, or am I going to have to wait till we get our coffee?"

"I'm going to let the suspense kill you."

"Well, you're mean."

"I try," grinned Nicola.

"Fine, then if you're not going to talk about that, then we'll move on to our trip to Metropolis tomorrow."

"Yeah, about that, I won't be able to use the car tomorrow."'

"What? Well, I guess we could use my car."

"That could work," agreed Nicola, although she knew that Lex was probably going to give them a lift.

"So, did you come up with any places we could go?"

"I was thinking lunch at Pizza Mystique."

"Great idea, they have awesome pizza. Anything else?"

"The Great Divine has excellent coffee. We can get some upon arrival."

"Never heard of it."

"It's new. They opened last year."

"Oh. Well, sounds good."

"So how about you? Do you know any places in Metropolis we could go?"

"I have a few places in mind."

"Let me guess, _The Daily Planet_ building? Maybe take a picture with Pete and Clark so you can see the globe way above them?" joked Nicola.

"Oh, you're funny."

"I try."

"No, I wasn't thinking of the _Daily Planet_ building. Just because I want to be a reporter there some day doesn't mean I obsess about the place."

"I know, I know."

"Anyway, I was thinking we could see a movie a one of the cineplexes since they have some we can't see within a 50 mile radius of Smallville."

"Good idea. I miss not being able to see the independent films."

"Same here."

"If we need more ideas of places we could go, maybe Lex could throw in some suggestions," suggested Nicola, before she realized what she said. She really needed to get Lex off the brain.

Chloe looked at Nicola quizzically.

"What?" asked Nicola defensively.

"Nothing. It's just, what made you think of Lex?"

"Lex is from Metropolis, a fact many people know. We were talking about Metropolis, so Lex came to mind as someone who might know more about Metropolis than we do," Nicola quickly covered up with.

"It's interesting."

Nicola regarded Chloe strangely.

"What is?"

"The fact you can lie so easily, like a second nature."

"I'm not lying."

"See, there it is again."

"I'm not," replied Nicola as they pulled up nearby the Beanery and came to a stop after parking.

"Nicola, I'm a reporter. And I'm going to trust my instincts when I say, you're not telling the whole truth. In fact, you've been dancing around the truth for weeks now. We're friends, right?"

"Yeah, of course."

"Well, as your friend, you can trust me with whatever it is you've been hiding from everyone, although I think I already know what it is."

Nicola took a deep breath and contemplated the situation. She knew some was bound to find out about her and Lex's relationship, whatever that may be, sometime, so why not let Chloe be the first to know? Next to Clark, Chloe was one of her closest friends in Smallville, Nicola knew she could trust her. Anyway, she had been sort of wanting to tell someone about her thing with Lex, and she knew very well it couldn't be Clark, seeing as he was best friends with Lex, so word would eventually get back to him. So, Nicola decided whether or not should tell Chloe. She turned to face Chloe.

"Alright, before I tell you anything, you have to swear that this information will not leave this car. You can't tell anyone, especially Clark or Pete. And, even though I know you would never do it to me, you've got to promise that this bit of info won't be in the next addition of the Torch."

"I promise."

"Well, the guy I was with last nightIt was Lex."

Chloe's face went agape then she beamed a grin.

"I was right," she announced with self-satisfaction.

"Yeah, you were right."

"So, what did you guys do last night?" she asked with a mischievous twinkle in her eye.

"We talked."

"Wait, you got an insight into the mind of the elusive Lex Luthor? Do tell."

"Sorry, that's personal." 

Nicola opened her door quickly, climbed out of the car, and then started walking towards the Beanery, followed just as briskly as Chloe.

"Oh come on, give me a little something."

"Fine," sighed Nicola. "He likes Mac & Cheese."

"Mac & Cheese?"  
"Yeah."

They reached the Beanery entrance and walked through the door.

"Macaroni & Cheese," Chloe said again.

"Yes."

"From scratch?"

"From the box."

Before Chloe could comment further, they found themselves at the counter. They placed their orders then found a table they could sit at and wait for their drinks.

"That's funny. I never would have taken him for the boxed Mac & Cheese type."

"Neither did I."

"So, what else did you do besides talk?"

"Stuff"

"Stuff? Care to elaborate? I mean did you, you know?" Chloe insinuated.

"No!" Nicola replied quickly. "But I'll admit, the thought did cross my mind. But, I would never"

"Right."

"I wouldn't."  
"Have you everbeen to Café Creole in Metropolis?"

Nicola gave Chloe a strange look before answering, "Yeah, their coffee's okay"

"Hello ladies," Nicola heard a smooth, sophisticated, familiar behind her.

She then understood why Chloe diverted the conversation so quickly. Nicola turned around to face their visitor.

"Hello Mr. Luthor," said Chloe.

"Hi there Luthor," said Nicola.

"How are you two doing this morning?"

"Good."

"Great, thanks. How are you?"

"I'm pretty good, myself. Mind if I join you two?"  
"Not at all," replied Chloe.

Lex pulled out the empty seat next to Nicola and sat down.

"I was talking to Clark this morning"

"Oh, so that's why you're in the good mood? Because you got your daily Clark fix?" joked Nicola.

"Actually, no. The reason I'm in a good mood has nothing to do with Clark's visit this morning," he replied, giving Nicola a knowing look that most people wouldn't have caught, but it didn't go unnoticed by Chloe.

"So back to your talk with Clark this morning" interrupted Chloe, trying to get the conversation back on track.

"Right. Well, he mentioned to me that you guys were all going to Metropolis tomorrow."

"Yeah, if the guys get the 'ok' from their parents," said Nicola.

Before they could continue, one of the waitresses came with Nicola and Chloe's drinks. After receiving a small thank you from the two girls, the waitress then took Lex's "to go" order before leaving Nicola, Lex, and Chloe to their conversation again.

"Well, I told Clark that I would be willing to give you all a lift since I am headed there tomorrow morning anyway."

"Well, that's really sweet of you Lex, but I'm not sure if my parents would let you drive me anywhere, you know, considering your driving history," smirked Nicola with a mischievous twinkle in her eye.

"Hey, I'm an excellent driver."

"Yeah, when you're not recklessly speeding."

"You wound me, Lively."

"I try."

Nicola smiled at Lex and gave him a small wink. Chloe just sat back and watched the two's exchanges with amusement.

"Well, don't worry Miss Lively, I will not be the one driving. My limo driver will be taking care of that."

"Wait, you're offering us a limo drive up to Metropolis?" Chloe asked Lex.

"Yes, that is what I was purposing."

"Wow, that's really nice of you, Mr. Luthor."

"Like I said, I'm going there anyway."

"Still."

"Okay, hypothetically speaking, let's say the boys do get permission from their parents and we do take you up on that limo ride. What time were you planning on leaving?" asked Nicola.

"I was thinking 9ish."

"That's what we were thinking too," said Chloe.

"Great."

"And, now this is hypothetical again, would we go to your castle for the ride, or is the limo going to come to each of our houses to pick us up?" asked Nicola.

"The limo will pick all of you up at your individual houses."

"Wonderful. Now, if Pete and Clark get the thumbs up from their parents, one of us will give you a call to sort out a few other details, how's that sound?" asked Chloe.

"Sounds great."

"Well, as much as I'd love to stay and chat, I need to head off to the Kent farm to visit our favorite farm boy," Nicola informed her two companions, standing up just as Lex's coffee came to the table. Lex and Chloe stood up slowly next.

"Do you need a ride?" asked Chloe.

"Sure that would be great."

"I can give her a ride, Miss Sullivan. I was headed there anyway myself," said Lex.

"I thought you saw him this morning," said Nicola.

"I did, I just have an invitation I forgot to give him."

"Oh. Well, a ride would be wonderful, thanks."

"I should get going myself. It was nice to see you again, Mr. Luthor," said Chloe, extending her hand for Lex to shake, which he took. "Thanks again for the limo ride offer."

"It's not a problem. And Miss Sullivan?"

"Yes?"

"It's Lex."

"Then you call me Chloe."

"Alright, Chloe. Well, I'll see you tomorrow, most likely."

"Right. Bye Lex," she emphasized his name.

"Bye Chloe, I'll call you later when I get off of work so we can finish our conversation."

"Sure," grinned Chloe. "Tell Clark hi for me."

"Okay."

"Shall we?" said Lex, extending his elbow, which Nicola latched onto.

As Lex and Nicola walked towards the entrance doors, Chloe watched the couple. And as Lex opened the door for Nicola, Chloe shook her head with a smile on her face.

"God, could they be more obvious?" she thought before going to the counter to ordering herself another coffee.

In only a few seconds span, Nicola and Lex arrived next to his silver Vantage Volante. He unlocked then opened the passenger side door for her, helped her in, and then closed the door for her before going to driver's side of the car and getting in himself. He started the car, then they headed off.

"She knows, doesn't she?" asked Lex, nonchalantly.

"Yeah," admitted Nicola, deciding not to play dumb. "She figured it out somehow. She's going to make a damn good reporter someday."

"I don't doubt it."

"You aren't mad, are you?"

'That she knows? Of course not. I realize it would have been inevitable before someone found out."

Lex took one of his hands off the steering wheel and found its way to Nicola's. He intertwined his hand with hers, then brought her hand up to his lips to kiss. Nicola smiled as his lips touched her hand.

"So, how did you sleep last night?" asked Nicola.

"Pleasantly well. Although I missed your body heat."

"Ah, well I missed yours too."

"I had the most interesting dream last night."

Nicola shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

"Oh?" 

"Yeah. I don't remember every detail, but I know I was watching the nine-year old version of myself with my mom. Then you appeared in the dream and talked to me."

"Really?" said Nicola, trying to appear surprised. "What did we talk about?"

"You told me you'd always be here for me. Do you share the same thoughts as your dream self?"

"Of course. Whenever you need me," she replied without hesitation, forgetting she said just that in the dream.

Lex's brow furrowed as if he was having a case a déjà vu, then remembered her saying that in dream.

"You said that in the dream."

Nicola mentally cursed herself, but then rationalized that he wouldn't know from uttering a couple things she said in the dream that she really was in his dream.

"Well then, it seems like your subconscious knows what I'll say before I say it."

"So it seems."

They drove in silence the rest of the short drive to Clark's house. When they pulled to a stop near the barn, Nicola was about to climb out when Lex told her to wait. She turned and faced him.

"What?"

Lex placed a hand on her check, then slowly leaned in and kissed her.

"I've been wanting to do that since I saw you in the Beanery."

"I share your sentiments."

"Now, why don't we go see our favorite farm boy?"

They climbed out of Lex's Volante and then together walked towards Clark's fortress of solitude. 

"Five bucks says he's looking through his telescope. Another five says the view is fixed on Miss Lang's humble abode," Nicola whispered to Lex.

"As much as I love a good bet, I don't want bet ten dollars knowing I'll lose," he replied.

They quietly crept up the steps to the flat and soon Clark came into view. Sure enough, Clark was standing at his telescope peering through it.

"You know, when I bet ten dollars you were spying on Lana through your telescope, I was kind of hoping I would be wrong," Nicola said loudly to Clark, causing to startle to him.

"Jeez Nicola, give a guy a heart attack why don't you," Clark said turning around. He slightly froze when he saw Lex next to Nicola, chuckling no less. "Lex. What are you two doing here?"  
"Nice to see you too, Clark," said Lex as they made their way closer to Clark.

"Is it so wrong that two people want to come see one of their favorite people during the middle of the day?" asked Nicola.

"No, well, it's justdid you two come here together?"

"No Clark, we just arrived at exactly the same time in the same exact car," Nicola said sarcastically.

"I saw Nicola at the Beanery with Chloe. She mentioned she was going to come over see you and, since she had no car, and the fact I was on my way here anyway, I offered to give her a ride," explained Lex.

"Oh."

"I have to make this visit quick since I have matters to attend to at the plant," said Lex as he took an envelope from the pocket that was inside of his coat jacket, which he then handed to Clark. "This is your formal invitation to the gala; it will get you inside the museum without a problem."

"Thanks."

"Well, I better get going. The meeting at the plant won't take too long, so if you need a ride home later, Nicola, I could swing back."

"No, that's okay. Clark can give me a ride, can't ya, Clark?"

"Yeah, it's no problem."

"Okay, then I'll see you two kids tomorrow morning."

With that, Lex turned and trotted down the stairs to his car.

"So what's up?" asked Clark as soon as Lex was down the last step.

"Nothing, I just wanted to see what you were up to before I go to work."

"Oh."

"Did your parents give you permission to go to Metropolis tomorrow?"

"Yeah. Reluctantly might I add, especially after I mentioned the gallery opening on Tuesday."

"Will they let you go to both?"

"Only because I've 'been doing so well with my grades and keeping up with my chores.'"

"Well, that's great. Now we only have Pete to worry about."

"Speaking of Pete and worrying; did Lex tell you he offered to give us a ride tomorrow?"

"He might have mentioned that in our conversation at the Beanery."

"I hope Pete can look past his hostility with the Luthor name for a couple of hours and accept a ride from Lex."

"Well, I'm sure Chloe can sweet talk him into going."

"Hopefully."

"Hey, Kent, don't underestimate the power of the Chloe Persuasion."

"Right. So, what have Chloe and you have planned for our little trip?'

"Well, nothing's set in stone as of yet, but we have a couple of ideas floating around here and there."

"Well, I'm sure whatever you guys plan we'll have fun."

"Oh, of course," replied Nicola, then had a short pause, a smirk forming across her face. "So, how did the rest of dream go last night?"

A blush spread across Clark's face.

"It was fine."

"Fine? Clark, please tell me that your dream went past a G-rating at least, otherwise your going to make me regret leaving you to make your own dream decisions."

"If I tell you it was at least a PG-13, but definitely not NC-17 material, would you leave me alone?"

"Sure," smiled Nicole, before adding a mutter of, "for now."

"So, are you going to go to the gallery opening?" asked Clark, diverting the subject back to previous topics.

"Yeah, it will be a nice change of pace from all things Smallville."

"Have you been back to Metropolis since moving out here yet?"

"Actually no, tomorrow will be my first time back since the day I left."

"Why haven't you gone back yet? I mean, with your powers it would only take you a couple of seconds to get there and back."

"It's just that before, I figured that if I orbed back, I'd just miss it even more than I already do."

"That makes sense."

"But going back tomorrow and Tuesday will be a nice, if not short, needed vacation from farm country."

"Smallville's not that bad."

Nicola gave Clark a look that suggested otherwise.

"So, what are you doing today?"

"Nothing much. Probably help my dad around the farm. Do what chores I would be doing tomorrow if I was around."

"Sounds like fun."

"What are you doing?"

"Well, if you were paying attention earlier, I have to work."

"Right."

Nicola glanced at her watch and realized she needed to get home so she could get ready for work.

"Well, CK, as much fun as this has been, I've got to fly."

"Okay. If I find time, I'll stop by the Beanery."  
"Alright. Bye."

In a blink of an eye, Nicola orbed out of Clark's Fortress of Solitude to her house so she could get ready for work.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
TBC. Working on the next two chapters simultaneously as we speak. Hopefully, I can finish them soon. Any comments, suggestions, thoughts, wishes, etc. are welcome. If anyone wants/is willing to beta this story for me in the future, just e-mail me.


	9. Late Night Rendezvous

****

Disclaimer: Still don't own Smallville. Damn.

****

Rating: PG-13, although some of it is slightly at R-level.

****

Author's Notes: Wow, guys, sorry it's taken me so long to post some new stuff for this story. I'm still basically having the same problems as I have had in the past. I'm still not exactly at the Rogue part yet, that will probably be in not the next chapter, but the one after that. I'm trying to get there as soon as I can, but I find more and more stuff to add to this part of the story, that it's hard to move through it quickly. I promise I'll try to write more swiftly though.

****

*****A warning for this chapter: it gets a little risqué at one point, some might even say gratuitous. So if you're a part of the younger reader audience, or get slightly uncomfortable with sex scenes (mine's pretty non-graphic, and probably horribly written as I have no idea what the hell I'm really talking about) than I suggest you skip the **** part (it's not that long.)*******

Anyway, some of this chapter might seem random and possibly unnecessary, but I promise you, it will make more sense after you read the next to chapters, which I am working on now, and hopefully will be done with soon. Also I promise after the Rogue episode-chapter, it will be less Lex/Nicola centric and have more of Clark, Chloe, Pete, and Lana in it, I swear.

To Rene and blablah- Thanks for the reviews, love ya guys for it.

And thanks to everyone who has taken the time to read my story so far. I know they're long chapters, so thanks for you patience. If you have any suggestions, comments, or any random thoughts, feel free to express them in a review or email me.

Anyway, on with the newest chapter:

  
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Hours had passed since Nicola had gone to visit Clark. She currently found herself taking the orders of some kids she went to school with. She glanced at the door when the bell rang, and smiled as she found Chloe, Pete, and Clark were the ones who walked through the entryway together. After she finished taking the order, she walked over to the table the trio had sat at.

"Hey guys, what's up?"

"Nothing much, just decided to come hang out," replied Chloe.

Nicola noticed a hint of gloom hung over Pete's head, which indicated that Chloe might have informed him on how they were getting to Metropolis tomorrow.

"So, Pete, did you get permission from your parents to go to Metropolis tomorrow."

"Yeah, after a ten-minute lecture on the dangers of the big city. Luckily, they said I could go before they found out it would be Luthor who was accommodating the ride up there."

"Well, we are going to have a lot of fun tomorrow."

"Of course."

"As much as I'd love to just stand here and chat with you, I've gotta do some actual work for the next hour until I'm off. So, what can I get you guys?"

"A Coke for me," replied Pete.

"My usual, please," said Chloe.

"And let me guess, Clarkcoffee, black?"

"You know me well," grinned Clark.

"I'll be back with your drinks soon."

Nicola turned and walked back to the counter to get her orders situated. After she got the drinks for the tables that came before her friend's, she finally came back to their table with their orders.

"Here you go," she said, handing them their drinks.

They all replied some sort of thanks.

"So, do you want to do something after work?" asked Pete.

"I would love to, but I've got to go down to Edge City."

"Edge City? Why?" asked Chloe.  
"I've got to pick up my new car."

"New car? What kind?"

"Well, Pete, that I'm not sure of yet."

"How can you not know what car you're getting?" asked Clark.

"Well, my step-dad picked it out, so I won't know till I get home."

"And he didn't pick it up for you because"

"He can't drive his car and my car at the same time."

"Oh."

"Do you need a ride to pick up your car?" asked Chloe.

"No, I've got that covered, but thanks."

"What are friends for."

"So, what's the plan for tomorrow? Anyone call Lex to make plans?"

"Yeah. Lex said he would come pick us up in his limo at our houses," replied Clark.

"Actually, he's picking me up at Clark's house. I think my parents would flip if the limo came in front of our house to pick me up."

"And he'll pick us up around?"

"He said around nine in the morning," answered Clark.

"Okay, great. Uh oh, Gina's glaring at me, I better get back to work."

"Okay."

Nicola left her friends and then went back at the front counter to help out. Several minutes upon minutes passed, and Nicola was finally off. As soon as she got off, she changed out of her work clothes and then joined Pete, Chloe, and Clark at their table. As she plopped into a chair a sigh escaped from her mouth.

"You have no idea how nice it feels to be off my feet."

"Oh, poor Nicola," teased Pete, earning a tongue sticking out in his direction from her. "Very mature."

"So, how are you getting home?" asked Chloe.

"Not sure. Maybe walk."

"I could give you a ride, if you want."

"That'd be awesome, dude. Thanks."

"You're welcome. Let me just finish this cup, then we can head out."

"Alright."

As Chloe took in the hot liquid she held in her oversized mug the coffee shop provided, a waitress came over to their table to give them their bill for the food and extra drinks they consumed since sitting down.

"Do you want anything, Nicola?" the waitress asked as Chloe, Pete, and Clark dug into their pockets and wallets for cash.

"A caramel mocha to go would be great."

"Alright, I'll be right back with that for you."  
She grabbed the money that Nicola's friends had paid for their stuff with, then left to get Nicola's order taken care of. 

"So, did we decide if we were watching a movie tomorrow?"

"A movie? How boring is that? Shouldn't we be doing things in Metropolis we don't get to experience much in Smallville?" asked Pete.

"I'll have to agree with Pete on that one," said Clark.

"Fine, movie out," sighed Chloe. "Tomorrow, how about pizza for lunch?"

"Sounds good," replied Clark.

"Fine with me," added Pete.

"What time do y'all have to be home tomorrow?" asked Nicola.

"My parents want me to be promptly home by ten."

"Same with mine."

"My dad said 11 at the latest, and only if I promise to go directly sleep as soon as I get home."  
"So I think seven would the best time to leave Metropolis, agreed?"

The other three teens expressed some kind of agreement gesture.

"It's settled then. We'll have roughly seven hours to reek havoc in Metropolis."

"Sounds like fun."

"Here's your mocha," said the waitress, interrupting their conversation.

"Thanks," smiled Nicola, taking the drink from her. She then handed over a few bucks to pay for the drink and the tip. "Ready to go, Chlo?"

"Yeah," she replied, gulping down the last of her cappuccino before standing up.

"Great. Well, I guess we'll see you boys tomorrow."

"Bye guys," said Chloe.

"Bye," replied Pete.

"G'Night."

Nicola and Chloe walked out of the Beanery and then headed for Chloe's car.

"Someone was awfully eager to give me a ride. Was it possibly to corner me so their reporter instincts could kick in to interrogate me?"

"I think I should feel insulted."

"Oh, Chlo, you know I love you for it. So, go ahead, ask whatever it is you wanted to ask me all day."

"Okay, so you and your mystery man didn't do the horizontal mambo last night, right?"

"I already told you nothing happened."

"Alright. Now, my question, before your little boyfriend interrupted us this morning, was have you ever had sex before?"  
"Have you?"

"You answer first."

Nicola didn't answer Chloe and instead concentrated at the task of getting to Chloe's car. When they arrived to the car, Chloe unlocked the driver's side and got in. She then unlocked the passenger side so Nicola could get into it.

"So, you still haven't answered my question," Chloe said to Nicola as she started the car.  
"And I don't think I should dignify it with a response."

Chloe gave Nicola a look that said, 'you just don't want to answer.'

"Okay, fine, since I've told you so much about myself already, once I tell you the answer, you have to answer a few questions of mine."

"Fair enough."

"Alright," she paused before a second before revealing her answer. "I've had sex one time. Right before I came to Smallville."

"Really?" asked a shocked Chloe.

"Yep. He was my boyfriend at the time. It was the night before I had to move. I was upset, one thing led to another, and then it kind of just happened."

"Wow. That goodbye must have sucked the next day."  
"Actually, there was no goodbye; he didn't even know I was moving."

"Ouch."

"I know. And I feel horrible for what I did, but I always figured just leaving him behind would be easier for both of us."

"Was it? For you, at least?"

"No. I was miserable. But I kept that to myself. I didn't even write it in my journal, because then, by admitting it on paper, it would be more real. And then I met you and Clark and Pete and Lana and then Lex, so I found myself able to push it further and further into the back of my mind."

"Like a cop out?"

"As much as I hate to admit it to myself; yes, it was basically a cop out."

"Have you talked to him since?"

"No. I should, but I probably will never work up the courage to. Even though he was one of my best friends, I can't face him."

"Well, isn't your life just one big soap opera?"

"Unfortunately."

"Are you going to visit him while we're Metropolis?"

"Maybe. Probably not. Anyway, enough about me, it's you time."

"Oh, great."

"So, Miss Sullivan, how long have you been pining over a certain dark-haired, blue-eyed, flannel-wearing, farm boy?"

"Excuse me?"

"Okay, let me rephrase that. How long have you had the hots for Clark?"

"I don't have the hots for Clark," insisted Chloe.

"Chloe, if I remember correctly you were the one who told me to stop denying the obvious. So, dear, I must apply the same sentiment here."  
"Humph, you're not going to let this go, are you?"  
"Nope."

"Fine," sighed Chloe. "Eighth grade. From the first moment I laid my eyes on him."  
"I knew it," exclaimed Nicola, happily. "You two would be so cute together."

"Too bad that will never happen; he's too hung up on a certain someone with the initials LL."

"Chloe, you know him and Lex are just friends," she joked. "Look, I know currently Clark attached to a certain surgery-sweet ex-cheerleader brunette, but Clark, however dense he may be, will realize that the person he should be with was right under his nose the whole time."

"Yeah, right," scoffed Chloe. "Anyway, I thought you were friends with Lana. I'm surprised you haven't been trying to sway her over to the Clark-side yet."

"While I do like Lana, and I'm sure she and Clark would make an attractive couple, I'm not sure they're right for each other. Besides, she is with Whitney, and while I don't like the cocky bastard that much, he does seem to really care for her. Plus, I don't want to be the downfall of anyone's relationship."

"Right."

"Trust me, Chlo, I see major developments in your impending romantic relationship with Clark coming soon."

"Impending? Don't you mean non-existent?"

"Chloe, my dear, you have little faith. Trust me, it's in the stars."

"Okay"

"So, Chlo, when are you going to move in on Clark?"

"Um, try two weeks after never."

"I don't like that kind of defeatist attitude." 

"It's not defeatist, it's accepting the truth."

"You say tomatoe, I say defeatist."

"You are so corny."

"I try."

"All right, you have to promise to tell Clark or Pete, or Lex for that matter, anything about me liking Clark, okay? Or else I will have to kill you," Chloe said as they pulled up to Nicola's house.

"Promise. My secrets for your secret, however, if I ever find out you have let out my said secrets, I will tell your secret, then hunt you down, and then kill you," joked Nicola.

"Great."

Nicola opened the door then climbed out. 

"So, thanks for the ride."

"No problem."

"And I guess I'll see you tomorrow, bright and early."  
"Yep. See ya."

Nicola closed the door, gave a small wave to Chloe, then walked towards her front door as Chloe drove off. Her family was home, so when she climbed up the front steps and got to the front door, she found it unlocked. She found her family in the kitchen, sitting eating diner.  
"You started dinner with out me? Don't I feel the love."

"Quit being so melodramatic, there's enough for you too and we just started eating five minutes ago."

"Thanks."

Nicola grabbed herself a plate, then got herself some of the food which consisted of hotdogs and macaroni and cheese.

"So, how was Edge City?" Nicola asked as she sat down at the table.

"Fun," said Lindsay.

"No it wasn't, it was boring," replied Joey.

"No, it was fun."

"Boring."

"Fun!"

"Boring!"

"Kids, stop fighting," said Juliet.

"So, did you find me a car?"

"Yes, there was a Jeep in the lot. It actually wasn't in that bad of condition. One of front sides was smashed in pretty bad and the windshield was damaged. The engine was in fair condition; there was a hole in the transmission and the battery's dead, but everything else was fine."

"Great. When should I go?"

"Well, the yard closes at five and the guy said some staff will be there till six, so they should be gone by now."

"Okay, then I'll go after I eat. Just show me a map of where this place is, then I think I'll be able to orb there."

"Sure, before you go."

"Great."

The rest of dinner they discussed diatribe things, and then once done, Brad grabbed a map of Kansas to show Nicola where in Edge City the yard was located. She went down to her room to change out of her work clothes and into a pair of jeans and a baseball-style three-quarter-sleeved shirt. She then grabbed her favorite jean jacket and soon afterward orbed out of her house.

Nicola orbed herself to Edge City's auto wreckage yard, and sure enough, as planned, her totaled vehicle was waiting for her outside the gates. She surveyed the area, making sure there wasn't anyone or anything that would witness what she was about to do. She walked over to the jeep and touched it. In a matter of seconds, the deep dents on the sides disappeared, the cracked windshield was fixed, and the chipped paintjob now looked like a fresh coat. She walked around the car, checking out its body. Unhappy with its brown color, she touched the jeep to transform it to a blue hue. She opened the hood of the car and looked over the engine. With a swoosh of her hand, everything that hadn't been working was now in brand new condition. 

Nicola walked over to the driver side and opened the door. As promised, the keys were in the ignition. She turned the keys to test if the car would start and as expected, the engine turned on with a roar. Nicola smiled to herself, then put the car in drive and headed home.

She was halfway between Edge City and Smallville when her cell rang. She reached for her phone that was in her purse that sat in the passenger seat.

"Moshi, moshi?" she answered her phone in Japanese.

"I didn't know you were versed in Japanese," said the familiar voice in the line.

"There's still a lot of things you don't know about me, Luthor."

"Like where you are right now?"

"Exactly."  
"So are you going to tell me?"

"Tell you what?"

"Where you are?"

"What fun would that be? A girl needs to keep a shroud of mystery."

"I suppose I could always have my guys track your cell phone to find your location."

"Won't be necessary. If you must know, I'm heading towards Smallville from Edge City."

"And what, praytell, were you doing in Edge City?"

"Visiting my secret boyfriend."  
"Really?"

"Oh, yeah. Really good-looking guy. Blond hair, green eyes, and a great physique. Okay, so I really was picking up my new car."

"You bought yourself a new car?"

"Actually, mom and step-dad did. And technically it's used, not new."

"Oh. What kind?"  
"A soft-top Jeep with a removable top."

"Interesting choice of vehicle."

"Well, I told Brad I wanted a Lexus Luxury Convertible, but I was denied."

"Too bad."

"I know. So, to what do I owe the pleasure of your phone call?"  
"I was wondering if you wanted to stop by for a night cap?"

"I would, but I don't drink," joked Nicola.

"Okay, let me rephrase that. How about you come over and keep me company tonight?"

"Lex, sweetie, contrary to belief, I don't model myself after on-call hookers," Nicola told him sarcastically. "How about this; if you want to see me, meet me at Crater Lake Park at the spot that overlooks the lake in a half an hour. Oh, and bring a blanket."

She hung up the cell phone before Lex could reply, then pushed the accelerator to head to the destinated spot quicker. She arrived at Crater Lake Park in under twenty minutes. She climbed out of the car, then sat on the hood of it to wait for Lex. She laid up against the windshield of her car and glanced up at the stairs as she waited. Several minutes later, a Ferrari rolled up alongside her car. The driver door opened up, and then Lex stepped out of the car donning his usual attire. As he slowly strolled up to her, Nicola glanced at her watch.

"And with a minute to spare. Nice timing."

"I try."

Nicola slid off the hood of the engine of her car and stood next to him. Before she could say anything else, Lex planted a kiss on her lips. Once they broke apart, Nicola smiled up at him.

"So, did you bring the blanket?"

Without answering her, Lex backed away from her and went to his car. He opened the passenger door and perched in. When he fully came back out of the car, he turned and held the blanket up for Nicola to see. Nicola walked over to him and then took the blanket from him.

"Good job."

"Do I get a reward?"

"HmmI don't knowis it really worthy of one?" she asked, smiling mischievously at him.

"Absolutely."

"Okay, I suppose so."

Nicola placed the blanket on the hood of his car, then snaked her arms around Lex's neck, then moved in to kiss him as if on the lips, but instead she gave him peck on the cheek.

"That's my reward? I'm kind of insulted."

Nicola smirked at Lex, then quickly placed her lips on his. She sucked on his bottom lip, earning a slight moan from Lex. After a couple of minutes, she pulled apart from him so she could breath.

"Is that better?"  
"Much."

Nicola pulled apart from Lex, then grabbed the blanket. 

"You know, that ground doesn't look very comfortable. I can think of a cozier place we can go," said Lex as Nicola spread the blanket onto the ground.

"It only be for a little while," replied Nicola as she sat down on the blanket.

Lex walked up to her, then sat down beside her. Lex watched as Nicola's intense gaze moved up towards the stars.

"So, why did you pick this spot for us to meet?"

"No reason. Sometimes I take late night runs to this spot then lie on the grass and look up at the stars. It kind of reminds me of when I went camping with my dad before he died."

"Oh."

Nicola shivered involuntarily, which Lex noticed, so he wrapped his arms around her, and pulled her close to him. Nicola closed her eyes, and leaned back into him.

"Okay, it's too cold to just sit here. Let's go back to your place."

"Great idea."

Nicola stood up, followed by Lex, and then she picked up the blanket.

"I have to stop by my house to grab a few things, then I'll meet you at your place, okay?"  
"Alright."

"See you then."

Nicola turned and started to walk to her car, when Lex grabbed her arm and spun her around to him. He then promptly lowered his mouth onto hers and kissed her.

"What was that for?"

"Just so I have something to subdue me with until you get to my place."

Nicola rolled her eyes.

"Well, I'm happy for you. See you in a few."  
Nicola got into her car and then drove off to her house. She looked at the clock on her radio as she made her way to her house and saw that it was 8:12. It took her about 10 minutes to get to her house. When she pulled up, she found all the lights on, which was no surprise. As she turned the engine off, the front door opened and her mom and Brad stepped out of the house with Joey and Lindsay in tow.

"Nice work," commented Brad as she got out of the car.

"I thought so."

"You would never know it was a complete wreck before," said Juliet.

"Let's just hope that the DMV never finds out," said Brad.

"Cool car," said Joey.

"Thanks kiddo. Shouldn't you be in bed?" Nicola said, picking him up.  
"I'm not tired."

"Hey mom, I was wondering, could I go to Chloe's house and spend the night there?" she asked as the five of them walked back into the house. "We figured it would be easier that way."  
"Didn't you spend last night there?"

"Yeah, so?"  
"Just checking. Yeah, sure."

"Great, thanks. I'll take Joey upstairs to change in his PJs for you, then get some stuff, then I'm gone."  
"Alright."

Nicola carried Joey upstairs to his room.

"Are you going to Metropolis tomorrow?" Joey asked Nicola as she put him down and then went to the dresser for his PJs.

"Yeah, why?"

Joey disappeared into his closet then came back out with a car toy.

"If you see Danny Mulligan, can you give this to him? I borrowed it before we left and just found it."  
"Sure."

Nicola took the small car from Joey and tucked it into her pocket. She then helped him put on his pajamas, and when she finished, a yawn escaped from his mouth.

"Tired now?"

Joey nodded his head.

"Come on, let's get you in bed."  
Nicola walked over to Joey's bed and pulled down his sheets so he could crawl in. Once he was underneath the covers, she pulled them up a little.

"Can you read me a story before you go?"

"Sure. Which one?"  
"_If You Give a Mouse a Cookie._"

"Good choice," replied Nicola as she went to the bookshelf and grabbed the book.

She laid on the bed next to Joey and propped the book up so he could see the pictures as she read. It took her about five minutes to slowly read the story and give Joey enough time to see each picture. When she was done, she glanced at him to find him fast asleep. She slid of the bed, then gave her brother a kiss on the forehead before leaving his room. When she got downstairs, she found Brad, Lindsay, and Juliet in the living room watching a movie.

"Joey's asleep," she announced to them.

"Thanks honey," replied Juliet.

"No problem."

Nicola walked past them and went downstairs to her room to grab some clothes. After that, she stopped into the bathroom to brush her teeth. When she was through with that, she put the toothbrush into her bag, and then proceeded to the front door.

"I'm leaving!"

"Have fun in Metropolis. Be safe."

"Will do, Ma."

With that, Nicola walked out of the house, got into her car, then drove to Lex's manor. She was there in under ten minutes since she sped on the nearly empty highway that led from her house to his. She pulled up to his place, grabbed her bag, then walked up the steps to his front door. A few moments following her knock on the door, it opened revealing Lex.

"Something hold you up?"  
"Sorry, my brother wanted me to read him a bedtime story."  
"Not a problem."

Lex motioned her into the manor and closed the door behind her. After helping her take off her coat, he grabbed her hand and then led her down one of the halls. He led her up some familiar stairs and towards a familiar door, and before she knew it they were in Lex's bedroom again. Nicola dropped her bag on the ground.

"Straight to the bedroom. A little presumptuous, don't you think?" she asked as Lex closed the door.

"I thought we already agreed this was the most comfortable place we could be."

"Maybe you're right."

Without warning, Lex placed his mouth on Nicola's and wrapped his arms around her waist to bring her closer. As her hip touched his, something hard that was in her pocket poked him. Without breaking the kiss, Lex took one hand from her waist and moved it to her pocket to take out whatever object that was in it. Nicola's lips moved to his neck, giving Lex leeway to see what he had taken out of her pocket.

"A racecar?"

"Oh, forgot about that," Nicola said, taking the car from him. She walked over to the bed, kicking off her sneakers in the process, and then placed the small racecar onto nightstand next to Lex's bed before sitting on the bed.

"You want to explain that one?" he asked as he sat next to her, then took of his expensive pair of loafers.   
"Since I was going to Metropolis tomorrow, my little brother wanted me to give it to his friend."

"Well, that's awfully sisterly of you to do that for him."

"Anything for Joey."

"It must be nice to have a little sibling who looks up to you."

"It's great. I love Joey and Lindsay more than anything in the world; I've helped take care of both of them, so I've grown attached."  
"I had a younger brother, but he died a few months after he was born."

"I'm sorry. What was his name?"  
"Julian."

"Well, I'm sure he would have been proud to call you his older brother."

"Not if my father had anything to do with it."  
Nicola frowned at Lex's comment.

"Why is it that every time we get together we take a walk down depressive lane?"

"Because we're both very extremely depressing people?"  
"Maybe. But I say, from now on, anytime we see the other get depressing, we divert their mood?"

"Agreed. And how do you propose we do this?"

"Like this," replied Nicola, leaning towards him to kiss again.

Lex slowly lowered Nicola down onto the bed without breaking contact from the kiss. Nicola wrapped her arms around him and brought him closer to her. Lex's right hand combed through her hair, while the other roamed down her side to her waist. A Lex's mouth moved to her neck, Nicola moved her hands from his back to his chest, and she then started to unbutton the black dress shirt he was wearing. She slid the shirt off him, revealing his bare chest. She then rolled the both of them around so she was on top, then started to placed kisses across his a chest. A moan of pleasure escaped from Lex's mouth as the kisses trailed down to his stomach.

Nicola's mouth moved away from Lex's body, causing a groan of protest to come from Lex, but he stopped when he saw the reason for this was so she could pull her T-shirt over head, revealing her lace bra. Seconds later, her mouth took his again. As this happened, she accidentally connected with him once again, but this time her body still appeared to be active. This time she got images of the day of meteor shower in 1989. As the images flashed through her mind, giving her a further look in the psychosis of Lex, Lex's hands roved to Nicola's back and without fully comprehending it, he instinctively and masterfully unhooked her bra. The last image she got from Lex before she was able to break the connection was the bright flash of the light from the meteor that caused Lex to lose his vibrant, red hair and felt how terrified Lex had felt. As she broke the connection, she pulled away from Lex with widened eyes. Lex mistook the widened eyes as having something to do with the fact that he unhooked her bra.

"I'm sorry, I really didn't mean to. I kind of got carried away," apologized Lex, causing Nicola snap out of whatever trance she was in.

Instead of replying she went into kiss him again. It was strange. She, for some reason, felt a strong link to Lex. If the random connections were any indication, this was an extremely unique pairing. True, she had randomly connected to Clark that one time, but this was different. It was if the cosmos were screaming at her, trying to get her attention, urging her that Lex was her soulmate or something. That's when she realized that she was falling in love with this sexy bald man she was embraced with and knew she was ready to take this relationship further.

"I'm ready," she murmured into his lips.

"What?" asked Lex, breaking away from the kiss.

"I want you to make love to me," whispered Nicola, realizing how cheesy she sounded, but that couldn't helped.

Lex burrowed his face into a frown, and he met her eyes in an intense gaze. He searched her eyes.

"Are you sure?"  
"Positive."

***************Lex placed a hand behind her head and brought it to him to kiss. His hands roved to her shoulders and then he slid the straps of her bra down her arms. Once the bra was removed, it was discarded to the floor, then Lex rolled Nicola and himself over so he was on top, then his lips moved from her lips, to her neck, tracing their way to her shoulder and then her collarbone. She wrapped an arm around his neck, her hands grabbed his head, bringing him closer to her. The feeling of flesh against flesh was exhilarating to her. Lex's lips eventually found their way back to Nicola's lips, and as they their tongues danced, Nicola's hands slowly slid down Lex's chest to his chiseled abs, finding her way to the waist of his pants. She unbuttoned his black slacks and then slowly unzipped them. With Lex's help, she managed to get them off of him, leaving him in only his boxers.

Lex's lips trailed down Nicola's neck then down the valley between her breasts, until they reached her flat stomach. As he did this, he unbuttoned and unzipped her jeans, then slowly pulled them down her legs. Once they were removed, his lips roamed back up until they were on one her breasts while he caressed the other with his hand. As Lex's expert hand and mouth did their magic, a moan of pleasure passed through Nicola's lips.

"Lex," breathed Nicola.

He grinned at the reaction his touches were causing Nicola to have, and soon his lips found their way back to hers. His hands went to the curve of her waist, then moved down the sides of her hips. Nicola's hands moved to his chest, and she slightly pushed him back.

"Do you have protection?" she asked him, realizing that now was the best time to ask before they got too carried away.

Lex slowly moved away from Nicola and moved for the nightstand next to the bed. He opened the top drawer, and then he pulled a condom out of it.

"I don't know whether I should be glad you have a condom on hand or worried."

"My motto is, always be prepared.'"

"Funny, I never pictured you as the boy-scout type."

"Cute."

"I thought so."

Before Nicola could say anymore, Lex's lips were on hers again. Slowly, the last bit of clothing remaining on either body was removed, leaving both parties bare. Lex peered down at Nicola, taking in every curve of her body. After putting on the condom, he looked into Nicola's eyes one more time, and decided to give her one last chance to back out before the reached the point of no return.

"Are you sure this is what you want?" he asked softly.

"Lex, we wouldn't have gotten this far if I wasn't absolutely positive that this was what wanted. Now, stop second-guessing yourself and my decision-making skills. I want you more than anything in the world." 

Lex placed his mouth on Nicola's and his tongue probed her mouth. He entered her crevasse and began to thrust into her. They moved rhythmically together. Nicola tightened her grip on Lex and her hands wove their way to the nape of Lex's neck. As she reached her climax, Nicola purred Lex's name. Lex thought it was quite possible the most erotic thing he'd ever heard. He soon found his release, and collapsed on the bed next to Nicola. She moved so that she was on top of Lex, and she started to leave a trail of kisses all over his body, eliciting a moan from him. Ready to go another round, Nicola grabbed another condom, and started to slip it on Lex, earning a raised eyebrow.

"I have the feeling we're going to wear ourselves out tonight," commented Lex.

"You're very perceptive," replied Nicola as she straddled his lap, then kissing him soundly on the lips. ******************

Nicola and Lex went at it like rabbits that night. Late into evening, they finally found sleep. Shortly thereafter, Nicola woke up after getting her regular two hours of sleep, and she started when she woke up snuggling naked next to an equally naked, warm body. After the few seconds of disorientation that usually occurred after waking up, Nicola remember where she was and what had transpired that night. A goofy smile spread across her face, and she nestled her head into Lex's chest. A reply of the events that occurred earlier that evening ran through her mind and she started to think about her first time in comparison with this one. Sex with Brian had been wonderful, magically in fact. But sex with Lex had been so mind-blowing that there were no words to express its greatness. The morning after with Brian had been strange, slightly uncomfortable, probably due to the fact that she knew she would be leaving later that day and it was the first time she had woken up naked in a bed, let alone naked with another person. As she laid with Lex under the plush covers, she felt as sense of complete serenity.

A rush of thoughts flew through Nicola's a mind as she pondered her feelings for the man sleeping beside her. She knew she was attracted to him, that much was obvious, but now she realized her connection with him ran deeper than that. It wasn't merely just a physical thing, not that the physical aspect wasn't great, because, by god, it was. This wasn't just a schoolgirl crush or a lustful yearning; it was more.

"I love him."

The words slipped out of her mouth before she could stop them. This sudden epiphany that flew out of her mouth startled her. Her eyes widened, as it seemed as though Lex was starting to stir, but luckily for her, he was still soundly asleep. She let out a short sigh of relief. _What would have happened if he had heard me?_ Nicola pondered to herself. _Would he have laughed at me, telling me that I was in over my head and it wasn't love I was feeling? Would he startled and ran as far as he could from me? Or would he have professed his own love for me, and we would kiss passionately and live happily ever after?_

Nicola scoffed at her last scenario and chastised herself for such ridiculous thoughts. She was acting like a starry-eyed teenager in love.

__

That's because you are a starry-eyed teenager in love, Nicola's subconscious spoke to her.

Nicola shrugged off her pesky subconscious and slowly rose in bed. She pulled one of the blankets off the bed and wrapped it around herself. She slipped out of the bed, then walked over to the large window that peered over the manor's grounds. From where she stood at the window, she could see the beautiful garden that sat in the backyard. The nearly full moon shone down on her through the window, casting an enchanting glow on her skin.

As she stood there, peering out into the night, Lex slowly began to awaken from his slumber. The removal of the warm body that had been lying next to him and one blanket that had been on top of him caused an imbalance in his sleep, causing him to drift out of it. His hand moved to the spot next to him bed where Nicola had been lying, only to find the spot bare. He slowly opened his eyes and glanced around the room. He quickly spotted Nicola standing in front of his window wrapped in one of his blankets. The glow of the moon against her skin illuminated her beauty, and he stared in awe. _I'm turning into a romantic sap, _Lex thought to himself. Lex Luthor was many things; suave, charismatic, powerful, intelligent, but rarely would he consider himself remotely romantic.

He laid there in silence watching the seventeen year-old girl——no, not girl, woman—— stand beside the window, and he pondered the reality of his relationship with her. What was their relationship now? Obviously more than acquaintances or friends, but what? Boyfriend and girlfriend? Lovers? Occasional make-out/sex partners? What? God, it was as if he was reverting back to being a lovesick teenager, but even in his teen years he never thought like this. In high school and college, he was all about the prowl, the conquering. He never cared about his status with a female. He didn't care if he, she, or anyone else for that matter, considered their partnering to be of friends, boyfriend/girlfriend, or lover status. 

So why start now? He was 21 years old, on the brink of gaining a business empire. Great things were coming his way. But suddenly this girl——woman—— this beautiful, witty, invigorating young woman whirlwinds into his life and everything that had completely sucked in his life at that moment in time seemed miniscule. He forgot about his spawn of the devil father and the fact that he had been banished to this cow of a town, and instead immersed himself into this budding relationship. With her, he didn't want to think about the past or the future, he only cared about now. And it scared the hell out of him.

Nicola rested her head against the cold glass and closed her eyes. If there was one thing she knew for sure was, this time, she wasn't going to run. She was going to stay put and see what will transpire, let it run its course. She wasn't sure how long this was going to last, and she didn't care. She was content with what they had, and she vowed to live in the now.

An involuntary shiver ran across her body, and Nicola pulled the blanket closer to her body. Lex, seeing this, decided it would be best for her to get back under the covers with him where she would be kept warm

"Why don't you come back to bed?" Lex's voice floated through the quiet room, causing Nicola to jump by the sudden noise.

"God, you scared the crap out of me."

"Sorry."

"It's okay."

Nicola slowly made her way back to the bed and spread the blanket back on top of the bed before crawling under the covers next to Lex. She snuggled against him, placing her head on his chest. He kissed her on top of the head, then wrapped his arm around her.

"What were doing out of bed?"

"Just thinking."

"About what?"

"Nothing important," lied Nicola.

"Well, I missed your body heat," Lex replied sleepily, indicating that he was still tired.

"I'm sorry, it'll never happen again."

"Good."

"Go back to sleep Lex, we have an early day tomorrow."

"Right."

Lex closed his eyes, and slowly found himself drifting back to sleep. From Lex's labored breathing, Nicola knew he had gone back to his slumber. Nicola closed her eyes, and listened to the rhythm of his heartbeat and breathing. She knew there was absolutely no chance of going her going to sleep, so she just had to be content with lying in Lex's arms until it was time for them to get ready for Metropolis the next day, which wouldn't be a problem

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

TBC soon, I hope. What did you think? Loved it? Hated it? Total indifference? Just tell me, but make it be a helpful comment. For example, don't just say it sucked, tell me why you thought it sucked. I'll take all of your comments to heart.


	10. The Trip to the Trop

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Disclaimer: Smallville is still not in my realm of possession.

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Rating: PG-13

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Author's Notes: I'm finally done with a new chapter!! Woo hoo! I thought this day would never come. I warn you though, it's kind of a filler chapter, but I promise you there is some foreshadowing of what will happen in future chaptersMaybe. Anyway, I executed this chapter to the best of my ability. While during the day I have been extremely busy, I used my late nights of insomnia to try to finish this chapter. Since I've written a great deal of the next chapter already, I hope that the next chapter will be up faster than most of mine have been in the past.

To all of you who have taken the time to read and/or review, I want to thank you. I really appreciate it, and it makes all the fretting I suffer when trying to write this story worth it.

To Suz: I know the Nicola/Lex scenes are getting tedious, but I promise they are almost done in the romantical sense.

ThePinkSpider: Thanks. Sometimes I worry that I make it way too long, and am killing the reader. I'm sorry it takes me so long to update this, but since today was my last day of high school (ever) I will have more time to write, so maybe these ideas for chapters that are floating in my head will flow out faster.

Roman Tragique: Thank you so much. I appreciate the help with the grammatical errors, I tend not to re-read the chapters too intensely, so I overlook them. On the repetitiveness, I know I have the tendency to repeat words a lot, and I'll admit my vocabulary is quite diminutive. However, sometimes in the dialogue, I find it hard to use a variety of words in their response because in truth, I think that happens a lot in people's conversations (at least the ones I have with people, but maybe that's just me.) Anyway, thanks a lot for the help.

And Hmm: I hope this was fast enough for you, but probably wasn't.

Okay, so on with the story:

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The next time Lex woke up, the winter sun was just starting to rise. The spot next to him was empty, but when he touched the area, it still felt warm, so Nicola hadn't been out of it too long. He glanced at the alarm clock next to the bed and read that it was 7:24. He droggily glanced around the room seeing if there were any signs that Nicola was still there. He saw her discarded articles of clothing still on the floor, and her backpack was near the door, so he knew she was still in his house. As his senses became more aware, he heard the faint sound of sprinkling water coming from his bathroom. He forced himself out of bed, and walked to the nearby bureau to grab a pair of his silk pajama bottoms to slip on. He walked over to the bathroom door and pulled on the handle of the door to find it unlocked. Lex pushed opened the door and walked into the steamy bathroom. After walking in, he glanced at the shower and through the frosted glass he could make out the shape of Nicola's body.

As he slowly neared the shower door, the water shut off, and the door opened slightly. A hand reached out and grabbed a nearby hanging towel. As she walked out of the shower, Nicola wrapped the towel around her body. When the door was fully opened, she nearly walked into Lex, causing her to jump out of her skin.

"Jeez, Lex, you scared the crap out of me."

"Sorry, won't happen again," Lex said, but his smirk suggested that he was more amused than sorry.

"It better not, because the next time something jumps out at me, I'm going to take a swing at it."

"Duly noted."

"Good."

"How was the shower?"  
"Nice and warm."

"You know, you have woken me and we could have gone together, saved some time."

"Yeah, I'm sure a lot would have gotten accomplished that way," snorted Nicola. "I'm getting dressed, then I'm going downstairs for breakfast. Enjoy your shower."

Nicola slipped past him before he could reply, leaving him in the bathroom alone. After quickly changing, Nicola walked downstairs and wandered the halls of the manor, trying to locate the kitchen. Following several minutes, she finally found the room she was looking for. She entered the empty kitchen and walked to the refrigerator to survey its contents. She took out some milk and eggs, then closed the refrigerator door before searching for other items she would be needing to make breakfast for herself and Lex. As she was finishing cooking breakfast, Lex walked into the kitchen.

"You already started breakfast, Geraldine?" asked Lex, thinking it was his cook who had prepared breakfast that morning.

"Actually, I excused Geraldine from her breakfast duties this morning, I hope you don't mind."

"You excused my cook from making breakfast?"

"Yes. Because I am fully able to make some food for us to eat."

"But is it actually as edible as it smells? What is it by the way?"

Nicola opened the oven where she was keeping some of the food ready, and took it out to place on the stovetop.

"French toast and eggs."  
"Looks delicious."

"Thank you. Now, I want you to take the syrup, butter, and bottle of ketchup to the dining room and I'll be there in a second."

Wordlessly, Lex took the items he was in charge of and then walked out of the kitchen to the nearby dining room. Nicola put the slices of French toast on two plates, and then added some eggs. She grabbed a thing of Tabasco sauce and some silverware, then took the two plates of food to the dining room where Lex was waiting for her. She placed one plate in front of him, and then sat in the seat across from him.

"Bon appetite."

Nicola slathered some butter on her French toast, put some ketchup on the eggs, and then put syrup and Tabasco sauce on everything. She looked up at Lex and noticed him giving her a disgusted look.

"What?"

"What are you doing to your food?"  
"Making it yummy."

"Yeah, to someone with no taste buds."

"Hey, leave me alone. I like things sweet and spicy, okay?"

"Okay"

Lex moved his eyes to his own food, not wanting to watch Nicola consume the crap on her plate. They ate in silence for the next several minutes, reveling in each other's company. As they were finishing eating breakfast, a girl Nicola recognized from school walked in the room, interrupting Lex and Nicola's comfortable silence. Nicola was puzzled by the girl's presence, and judging by the girl's expression, she was even more puzzled with Nicola's.

"Amy. What can I do for you?" Lex asked the girl.

"My mom wanted me to tidy up the dining room. I didn't realize you were in here entertaining a guest this morning," looking poignantly at Nicola.

"Yes, this is Nicola Lively."

"Hello. You're friends with Clark Kent, right?"  
"Yeah."

"So, what are you doing here so early in the morning?" Amy asked, trying to sound indifferently curious, but she failed miserably, and instead she sounded slightly suspicious.

"Lex is giving Clark, Pete Ross, Chloe Sullivan, and me a ride to Metropolis, so I came early to mooch on him for some breakfast," replied Nicola. She glanced at her watch. "We better get going if we want be to pick-up the others before nine."

"Alright. Amy, since I'm going to for the day, could you inform the staff that is here that they can have the day off?"

"Sure Lex. Have fun in Metropolis," Amy said brightly.

"I'm just going there for business which is never fun."

Nicola started to tug on Lex's arm, pulling him towards the door.

"Come on, Lex. I want to get coffee from the Beanery before we go pick everyone up."

"Well I wouldn't want to deny you of your life source. We'll see you later, Amy."

"Bye Lex."

Nicola pulled Lex out the door, feeling the irate glare from Amy directed at her back. As soon as she shut the dining room door behind them, her hand slid down Lex's arm until it was entwined with his hand.

"Care to explain?" asked Lex.

Nicola glanced over at Lex, raising her eyebrow.

"What are you talking about?"

"That thing with Amy. You two not like each other something?"

"I barely know the girl."

"Then what was with the hurry to get away from her?"

"I wasn't trying to get away from her. I was trying to get you away from her."

"Me? Why?"  
"She was ogling you with her eyes, and I didn't appreciate it."

Lex smirked. "Amy was not ogling me. I think someone was just jumping to conclusions."

"Whether you want to admit it or not Lex, that girl has a crush on you."

"How do you figure?"

"'Have fun in Metropolis,'" Nicola imitated Amy's voice.

"Wait. Because Amy told me to have fun in Metropolis, you assume she likes me?"

"It's not what she said, but the way she said it."

Lex smirked again at Nicola.

"Okay, stop smirking at me, it's getting irritating."

"I think someone's jealous."

"Jealous?" laughed Nicola. "I don't think so. Calling it like I see it, yes."

"Well, I think it's it cute that you'd get all riled up over little old me."

Nicola rolled her eyes.

"Please, you're not that special," scoffed Nicola.

"Really?"

"Yes, really."

Lex stopped walking whilst still holding on to Nicola's hand, causing her in turn to also stop. She turned to face him, looking at him questionably. Before she could comment on his erratic behavior, he pulled her close to him, and kissed her. Her eyes fluttered shut, and then her lips responded. She slightly opened her mouth, granting his tongue entry. Soon, his lips moved from hers and slowly went down to her neck, eliciting a moan of pleasure from Nicola.

"Okay, I omit my former statement. You are special."

Lex gave Nicola a real smile, not his smirk, then a quick kiss on the lips.

"I knew you'd see things my way."

Nicola rolled her eyes again.

"I have to the library to get some things for my meeting. The driver should be out in front; I'll meet you in the limo."

"Alright, but I'm going to get something from your room first and then my car, so you might beat me there."

"Okay."

Nicola turned and walked towards the staircase that led to Lex's room, while Lex headed for the library. Once she arrived in his room, she went to the nightstand where the toy racecar Joey had given her the night before was located and grabbed it. She slipped it into her pocket when a voice behind her made her jump.

"What are you doing in here?" a female voice asked from behind her.

Nicola turned to find Amy standing in the doorway to Lex's room.

"I could ask you the same thing."

"I was getting my mother Lex's laundry. What's your excuse?"

"Not that it's really any of your business, but I was looking for something for Lex."

"In his bedroom?"

"Yes, in his bedroom."

"It's interesting how you knew exactly where it was."

"Well, Lex gives excellent directions." Nicola's eyebrows furrowed as she realized the implication in what Amy just said. "Wait, were you watching me?"

"No" replied a flustered Amy. "Is something going on between you and Lex?"

"What makes you say that?"

"I saw you two in the hallway."

"Oh, that," said Nicola coolly, pushing every urge to accuse Amy of watching them. "I was just messing with Luthor, seeing what his reaction would be if I kissed him."

"He kissed you."

"Only after I questioned his kissing ability. Trust me Amy, nothing's going on, so you have nothing to worry about."

Amy frowned at this comment.

"What do you mean?"

"Amy, I know you like Lex. I don't blame you. He's gorgeous, nice, and charming as hell, but believe me, he's out of our league," said Nicola, trying to dissuade Amy from wanting to pursue Lex, although Nicola knew Amy wasn't really competition. Amy didn't reply, so Nicola decided that now would be the best time to leave. "Well, what Lex wanted isn't here and I'm sure Lex is probably waiting for me, so I better get going. See you on Monday, Amy."

With that, Nicola walked past Amy and hustled down the stairway. She made her way to the front door, then walked down to her car. After she grabbed a bag from inside, she walked over to where the limo was waiting for her. As she neared the limo, the driver got out of the car to open the door for her. When the door opened, she found Lex sitting in the limo, waiting for her.

Nicola climbed into the limo and slid next to him on the plush leather seat as the driver closed the door behind her. Lex wrapped an arm around Nicola's shoulder and she nestled into his side.

"What kept you this time?"  
"A starry-eyed freshman."

"Amy? I don't have a dead body to dispose of now, do I?"

Nicola rolled her eyes.

"Not yet."

"Good. So, I was thinking, my meeting won't take too long this morning, so how about you and I go out for lunch?"

"As nice as that sounds, Pete, Chloe, Clark, and I are already planning to eat lunch at Pizza Mystique."

"Oh."

"Why don't you join us?"

"I wouldn't want to impose."

"You wouldn't be imposing. Please? For me?"

"Alright, if you insist."

"Great," smiled Nicola.

Nicola moved in her seat so she was now straddling Lex, causing Lex to raise an eyebrow.

"What do you think you are doing, Lively?"  
"I've always wondered what it'd be like to make out in the back of limo."

She crushed her lips against Lex's and wrapped her arms around his neck. She ran her nails down the back of his head, earning a moan of delight from Lex. She ran her tongue over his bottom lip, then softly nibbled his bottom lip. They continued on like this for the whole drive to the Beanery. When the limo came to a stop, Nicola and Lex weren't aware of the fact that the limo had ceased to move until the driver cleared his throat after standing next to the door he had opened for a few minutes.

"Sir, we've arrived at the Beanery," announced the driver as Nicola slipped off Lex, slightly embarrassed.

"Thank you, driver."

They scooted down the seat until they reached the open door. Lex climbed out then leant his hand to Nicola to help her get out of the limo. Once she was out of the limo, Lex dropped her hand, and then they walked to the Beanery's entrance doors. They strode up to the counter and ordered their drinks plus a drink for Chloe. After receiving their drinks, they went back to the limo and got in for the ride to Chloe's.

When they pulled up to Chloe's house, they found the short blonde sitting on her porch awaiting their arrival. She hopped up from her seat on the step, and bounced down the steps and towards the car. The driver hadn't even had time to get out of the limo by time Chloe had reached the door to climb in. As she climbed into the back of the limo, Nicola gave her a puzzled look.

"What?" Chloe said defensively.

"Nothing. It's just, you're not usually so perky before noon," replied Nicola.

"I'm just excited to visit Metropolis today. I haven't been back in a couple months."

"Ah. Well, here's some coffee to help keep you from killing anybody."

"Thank you."

Chloe started to down the hot liquid in her hands, the caffeine slowly perking her up a little more. She silently observed the couple in front of her, and raised an eyebrow when she noticed their hands were woven together. Lex and Nicola didn't notice Chloe watching them, and instead enjoyed their drinks that were in their free hands. The drive to the Kent farm was a short one. Not long after they came to a stop, the door opened, causing Lex and Nicola to immediately dropped hands. Soon, the top of a head was in their vision as Clark climbed into the limo, shortly followed by Pete.

"Good morning Clark, Mr. Ross," Lex greeted the final two passengers of his limo for that day.

"Morning, Lex," greeted Clark with his trademark grin.

"Luthor," Pete managed to grunt out in a form of a greeting.

"Pete, nice to see you so cheerful in the morning," commented Nicola, trying to break the tension.

"Sorry, not usually a morning person."

"So, how are we passing the time for our three hour drive?" interjected Clark.

"Well, I brought a few games," said Nicola, opening her bag.

"Like what?" asked Chloe.

"Electronic Taboo, some cards, travel Scrabble, travel Guess Who, and Mad Libs."

"Mad Libs?" asked Lex.

"It's kind of like a fill in the blanks thing, except you don't know what blanks your filling in."

"Uh-huh."

"Look, they'll be fun."

"Yes, well if those don't tie us over, I have a collection of DVDs we can watch on the TV."

For the first hour, they played a couple of the games that Nicola brought, but then after that, they opted to watch one of the videos. After a few minutes of argument, it was decided, by majority vote, to watch _Dogma_. For most of the remaining two hours, the group intently watched the movie. Due to the various forms of entertainment, the drive seemed shorter than anticipated, and none of them paid attention as they pulled up to the office building where Lex had a meeting.

"Well, have fun for the next couple of hours. I'll meet you at the pizza place for 1:30, if that's all right?"

"Of course," replied Clark.

"Don't get into too much trouble."

"We'll try not to," said Nicola.

Lex slipped out of the limo and made his way into the building. As the limo drove off, the driver rolled down the window between them and asked them where they wanted to go first. After a little deliberation, they decided to go to Café Creole, which was located in downtown Metropolis, not far from the building Lex was in. Once they had some more caffeine in their systems, they took a stroll down the nearby streets and did some window-shopping. After a short time walking, Chloe abruptly stopped walking in the middle of the sidewalk, causing Pete, who had been walking directly behind her, to run smack into her.

"Chloe, girl, what's up?" asked Pete.

She didn't answer, and instead the group had to follow her gaze to find out why their blonde friend had ceased walking. To no one's surprise, they found her staring up at the globe that sat on top of the Daily Planet. All three of the other teens groaned or rolled their eyes at the discovery.

"Oh yes, the awe-inspiring Daily Planet building. I always stop in the middle of the sidewalk to appreciate its greatness," teased Nicola.

Chloe snapped out her daze, and mock-glared Nicola.

"You're one to talk. You'd do the same if we were in front of a billboard with food on it."

"Hey, those Big Macs look good on the truck billboards, okay?" joked Nicola.

"So this is the building of the 'best newspaper in the midwest?'" asked Clark, quoting Chloe. "The globe on top is kind of cheesy, don't you think?"  
"Couldn't agree with you more, Clark," said Pete.

"I think it looks majestic. It gives the building a little flair," defended Chloe.

"I agree. I always thought the big globe was cool," added Nicola.

"Right, so are we going to stand here all day looking at the thing or are we going to go inside?" asked Pete.

"Inside? Why would we go inside?" asked Chloe.

"Come on, Chlo. You know you want to."

"No, it's fine. I've already been in there enough."

"Well, I kind of want to see what the hype is about," said Clark.

"Yeah, let's go inside. I'm sure they'll let us walk around," said Nicola.

"Fine," sighed Chloe dramatically, but in reality was pretty excited about it. "If we must."

The group grinned at Chloe, then together they walked towards the entrance of the building. Nicola led the group towards some elevators. They looked at the directory that was next to the elevator doors.

"So, which floor?" asked Nicola.  
"Let's go to the fifth floor, that's where the investigative reporters are," suggested Chloe.

"Okay, fifth floor it is."  
Nicola pushed the up button on the wall and the four teens waited for the elevator to reach the lobby. A couple minutes later, the elevator finally reached the floor they were on, and they walked into it. Pete pushed the fifth floor button since he was the closest to it, and they stood in anticipation as the elevator slowly made its way up to their destinated floor. The elevator soon opened its doors again, and they walked out into the fifth floor.

There were several reporters scattered around the area at their desks, which were separated in cubicle-type surroundings. There was a hustle and bustle about them even as they sat at their computers doing research. As the four teens walked around the offices, Chloe watched with wide-eyes. They made their way past the reporters practically unnoticed. When they weaved their way around the reporters, a voice behind him them stopped them in their tracks.

"Can I help you guys?"

The group slowly turned around to find a cute guy who was about nineteen or twenty with a cart in front of him. Obviously an intern, and no one of real power to kick them out of the area, Nicola smiled sweetly at him.

"No, that's okay, we're good," replied Nicola for the group.

"Are you sure? I can show you around, if you want," he told them, really looking directly at Chloe when he said this.

Seeing this, Nicola took this to her advantage.

"You know, that'd be great."

"You sure your superiors won't get mad?" asked Chloe.

"Nah, they're really cool around here."

"Really? Good to know. So, are what do you do here?"

"I'm just a lowly intern, but hopefully in a couple years I can move up and become one of the reporters."

"So Intern-guy, do you have a name, or will I be forced to continue to call you Intern-guy?" asked Nicola.

"Please don't. I get called Intern-guy way too much here. The name's Wesley."

"Hello, Wesley. I'm Nicola. That's Clark, he's Pete, and the vivacious blonde here is Chloe, who is single, by the way."

Chloe's eyes went wide as Nicola said that, and felt herself wanting to find a hole to crawl into and die in. Wesley smiled, but didn't comment. As the three guys led the way, Chloe pulled Nicola back a little to speak to her.

"God, are you trying to pimp me out or something?" she hissed in horror. "I'm fully capable of getting my own dates."

"Sorry, Chlo. Sometimes my mouth just starts moving and I can't control what comes out. If it's any consolation, I think he's interested."

"Gee, thanks," Chloe replied sarcastically, but couldn't help but put a small smile on her face.

The two girls caught up with Pete, Clark, and Wesley as Wesley pointed out and explained certain details about what went on in each room. Not far into the tour, Nicola nudged Chloe so she was up in front next to Wesley while she, Pete, and Clark hung back a little. Nicola watched and listened in delight as Chloe and Wesley bantered back and forth during the tour, glad that her friend was showing signs of that she could be attracted to someone other than Clark Kent.

"So, where are you guys from?" Wesley asked Chloe as they walked down a corrider.

"Smallville, Kansas. But, I was born and raised here in Metropolis and Nicola grew up here too."

"Cool."

"How about you, are you from Metropolis?"

"Yep. I was born and raised here, too."

"Nice. You go to MetU?"

"Yep, I'm a sophomore there. Where do you guys go to school?"

"Smallville High School," Clark replied for the group.

Nicola glared at Clark, annoyed he gave their under-age status to Wesley, but as always, Clark was clueless.

"Oh, so you're seniors?"

"Not quite," admitted Chloe.

"Juniors?"

"I am," Nicola replied.

"Sophomores?"

Chloe shook her head.

"You three are freshmen?"

Chloe nodded her head.

"Wow. Freshmen?" repeated Wesley. "In high school?"

"Yep. If you don't want to be seen with us anymore, I totally understand."

"No, it's cool. It's just, you definitely don't look like freshmen."

"Thanks, I guess."

During the end of the conversation, Nicola glanced at her watch and saw that it was 1:15, which meant they had to leave now if they wanted to meet Lex on time at the pizza place.

"Wes, thanks a lot for the tour, but we have to get going," Nicola informed him.

"Sure, no problem."

"Hey, you wouldn't care to join us would you?" she invited him, not caring that Chloe was giving her another death glare. "We were just heading up to Mystique Pizza to meet up with a friend and grab a bite to eat."

"I'd love to, but I still have another couple hours to put in here."

"Oh, that's too bad. Well, it was nice meeting you."

"Yeah, you too."

"See ya," said Chloe.

"Bye."

The four teens started to head for the elevators, when Wesley's voice calling Chloe's name stopped them.

"Yeah?"

"Every summer, we have a couple internships open for high school students. You should really consider applying for it if you're as into journalism as you seem."

"I'll definitely look into it," said Chloe giving him one of her trademark, mega-watt grins.

"And if you're ever in Metropolis again, don't hesitate to look me up. It's Wesley Drexler; I'm listed."

"Will do."

Chloe gave him another grin before turning around and continuing the walk to the elevators. The whole walk to the pizza place, Nicola teased Chloe about her thing with Wesley. By the time they arrived at the pizza place, Chloe had heard Nicola tell her that she was right about the intern liking her a handful of times. The walked into the pizza place to find that it was pretty bus. They ordered a large half-pepperoni, half-cheese pizza and a small Hawaiian pizza, deciding that by the time the pizza was done, Lex would already have arrived. After getting their drinks, they grabbed a table in the middle of the restaurant and waited for Lex and their food. Several minutes later, Lex walked into the pizza place and glanced around for a few seconds before noticing them. He quickly made his way to the table and took the empty seat next to Nicola.

"So, how was the meeting?" asked Nicola.

"Boring, as expected. How was your sightseeing?"

"Great. But, we have a lot more to see this afternoon," Chloe replied for the gang.

The pizzas came, interrupting their conversation. Nicola grabbed the Hawaiian pizza and slid it in front. Lex reached over to take a slice of the pizza in front of her but found his hand being slapped for doing so.

"No touch. This baby's mine."

"You're going to eat a small pizza all by yourself?" asked Lex, amused.

"As a matter of fact, yes."

She picked up the shaker of pepper seasoning and the Parmesan then doused her pizza with the seasonings. She took a slice of the pizza and took a big bite of it. When she looked up at her friends, she saw all of them looking at her with a look of disgust. 

"Hey, don't knock it till you've tried it."

"I would, but I think it might kill me," commented Pete.

"I second that," said Chloe.

As the group scarfed down their food, a guy passing by recognized one of them and walked over to their table.

"Cola? Is that you?"

Nicola froze, and slowly swallowed her bite of pizza that she had in her mouth. She slowly looked up at the one person she was hoping she wouldn't run in to. All panic that initially overcame her dissolved once she locked eyes with her former beau and a rush of excitement took its place. 

"BRuss?" she asked with a big smile spread across her face, and then she stood up from her seat to give him a big hug. "Wow, I wasn't sure I'd see you here today."

"Yeah, well today I was in the sudden mood for pizza."

"You never could resist the pizza here."

"That's true. So, how are you?"

"Good. You?"

"I'm good. How's small-town life treating ya?"

"It has its ups and downs. So, are the guys here with you?"

"No, I actually came here with some other friends."

"Oh."

There was a short pause. During the ordeal, Lex subtly glared at the pair, unhappy about the arm Brian had around Nicola's waist. None of the Smallvillians noticed the look of annoyance that was on his face, but the look didn't go unnoticed by Brian. Before he could comment, Chloe spoke.

"Aren't you going to introduce us to your cute friend, Nicola?" asked Chloe, snapping Nicola out of her daze.

"Right. Brian, that's Lex, Chloe, Clark, and Pete," introduced Nicola, going around the table. "Guys, this is Brian. He and I used to kick it in Metropolis together."

"We did a lot more than kick it," Brian said, giving her a knowing look, which made her smile uneasily and Lex more agitated by the situation.

"Oh, so you're the infamous ex-flame?" inquired Chloe, realizing who he was.

"Yep, that's me. So, what brings you guys to Metropolis?"  
"Nothing really. Just wanted to see the sights and get away from Smallville for a day," answered Pete. "Got any recommendations."

"I've always liked the museum, but that's just me," replied Brian. Lex noticed the knowing look that he exchanged with Nicola, causing him to get a little more frustrated.

"We'll take that into consideration," said Clark.

"So are you just here for the day?"

"Yeah, but Nicola and I are coming back on Tuesday for a gala opening."

"Ah, you must be talking about the Luthor Gallery opening. Talk of the town. How did you manage to snag that invitation?"

"We have connections," replied Nicola. "We're friends with Lex Luthor."

A smirk spread across her face as she looked at Lex, who she noticed a look of annoyance marred his face.

"Oh, so you're _that_ Lex," said Brian. "I thought you looked familiar."

Lex didn't reply, feeling he didn't have to.

"Well, Nicola, if you need a place to get ready, you can come over to the house. The guys would love to see you again, and it would give us some time to catch up."

"Actually, she and Clark are getting ready at my penthouse," interjected Lex before Nicola could reply for herself.

"Since when did that arrangement get set?" asked Nicola, slightly annoyed that Lex was making plans for her without even asking.

"I just figured that it would be the most convenient scenario for all of us."

"Well, you figured wrong." She gave Lex an annoyed glare, then turned to Brian with a big grin on her face. "I would love to come to the house to get ready. I'll stop by around 6:30, okay?"

"Sounds great," grinned Brian, happy that he would get a chance to finally talk to Nicola again. "I better get back to my friends. I'll see you Tuesday, okay?"

"Definitely."

Brian gave Nicola another big hug before turning to walk to the other side of the restaurant where his friends were waiting for him. She watched him walk away, unintentionally with a look of yearning across her face.

"So, that was your ex-boyfriend, huh?" asked Pete, snapping her out of her daze.

"Huh? Oh, yeah, that was him," airily replied Nicola as she sat back down in her seat.

"Why did you break-up?" asked a curious Clark. "I mean, it's obvious you still like him."

"Yeah," chimed Pete. "You totally had the look Clark gets when he looks at Lana."

Clark attempted to glare at Pete, but failed and instead found himself blushing furiously.

"I don't give Lana looks of yearning," Clark defended himself.

"Sure you don't, Clark," said Chloe, grinning at him.

"I don't."  
"BRuss?" questioned Lex suddenly, causing the group to give him a puzzled look.

"That was our nickname for him. Brian Russell shortened to BRuss."

"Hmm."

Nicola arched an eyebrow at Lex, wondering what was wrong with him. 

"So, why did you two break-up?" Clark asked again.

"I was moving. I figured the long-distance thing wouldn't work out, so we broke-up."

"Oh. I could see how that would cause problems."

They ate the pizza in a near silence. A few slices later, Nicola stood up.

"If you'll excuse me for a minute, I'll be right back."

She left the table and then headed for the restrooms that were located in the back of the restaurant. When she came out of the restroom, she found Lex waiting outside the door for her.

"What?"

"We need to talk about this 'BRuss' thing."

"BRuss thing?" repeated Nicola. "What BRuss thing?"  
"I don't want you to go to your ex-beau's house when you obviously have feelings for him."

Nicola rolled her eyes. Just what she needed, a jealous boyfriend.

__

Did I internally just refer to Lex as my boyfriend? Nicola thought to herself. _What's wrong with me?_

"I don't still have feelings for him."

"Nicola, even Clark noticed. And even though I'm best friends with the guy, even I can admit he can be a little dense sometimes."

"Lex, I don't have feelings for Brian," she reaffirmed. "I have feelings for you, okay? Strong feelings. You have nothing to worry about."

"I still think it would be best for you to get ready at the penthouse."

A small grin curled on Nicola's lips and she then leaned in and gave Lex a short kiss.

"Lex, I'm going to get ready for the gallery at Brian's house. I mean I haven't seen him and the other guys since I left Metropolis, and they were a big part of my life in the Trop. So, please, just be understanding and trust me, okay?"

"I trust you. It's him I don't trust."

Nicola smiled at Lex, and gave him a peck on the cheek.

"Come on, let's get back to the table."

"All right. So, I was wondering if you want to have dinner together later tonight?" Lex asked as they walked back to the table.

"I'd love to. We can do it before we leave for Smallville. I think I know the perfect cover. You tell the guys before they go out for dinner that you need to use the limo to meet with someone, and I'll ask you if you can give me a ride to someplace where I'm planning to meet with a friend. But tell them that you'll drop them off to wherever they need to eat and then pick them up when they call. How does that sound?"

"Perfect."

They soon arrived back to the table, and no one at the table was suspicious of why they came back at the exact same time. Well, except Chloe, but she had an idea. They quickly finished their foods and drinks, and then decided to leave. Lex decided to join the teens in their adventure in Metropolis, since he had nothing else to really do for the rest of the afternoon. He even gave suggestions of places they should venture. As they drove from the third chosen place of the afternoon, Nicola noticed they were driving down a familiar rode. She saw a brownstone she had a feeling she had gone to a few times, and after skimming her mind really quick, she realized why it looked familiar. She pushed the button for the window that separated the driver from its passengers and asked the driver to pull over.

"What's up, Nicola?" asked Lex.

"I just remembered a task I told my brother I would do. I'll just be a second."

Without another word, Nicola briskly exited the car and walked up the street to the brownstone she needed to go to. The four teens and Lex watched with curiousity as she waited for someone to answer the door. A woman in her late-thirties answered the door, and the passengers of the limo watched as Nicola talked with her for a moment before the woman appeared towards her house. Seconds later, a boy around five stepped outside and looked up at Nicola. Nicola pulled something out of her pocket then crouched down so she was closer to eye level with the boy, then held out whatever it was she had in her pocket. The boy took the item and suddenly started beaming. After a couple of more words, Nicola stood up, then walked back to the limo. As she slipped back into the vehicle, the four other passengers looked expectantly at her.

"What?"

"What was that all about?" asked Pete.

"Oh, my brother wanted me to return something to a friend of his while I was in Metropolis and I almost forgot. Luckily we were driving down this street and I saw their house, otherwise I would have forgotten."

"Well, wasn't that sweet of you," said Clark.

"Yeah, yeah. I was just doing my brother a favor, is all."

"Uh-huh, admit it, we all know your just a big softy," said Chloe.

"So what if I am?" huffed Nicola.

"There's nothing wrong with it," assured Lex with a smirk. "It's cute."

"Will you guys quit it please, it's no big deal."

"Fine, the subject is dropped," said Pete.

"Thank you."

The conversation moved to a new subject, and they quickly continued on their drive to another hot spot in Metropolis. When five o'clock rolled around, Clark suggested they get something to eat for dinner before they leave for home. As planned, Lex announced he had to get to a meeting and Nicola played her part and asked him for a ride so she could meet a couple of friends. The group, none-the-wiser, said their good-byes to Nicola and Lex, and then the two went to the limo. Before Lex climbed into the limo after Nicola, he exchanged a couple of words with the driver.

"So, where are we eating?" she asked him as they drove away from their friends.

"My penthouse."

"Your penthouse? You aren't planning on seduce me, are you?"

"That depends. Are you seducible?"

"Maybe."

Lex placed a hand behind her head and guided her lips closer to his. They made out during the ride to his penthouse, and were disappointed when the limo door opened to let them know they had arrived. Lex took her into the tall building and towards the elevators. He pushed the button to the top floor where his penthouse was located and shortly thereafter, the elevator doors opened again to reveal his suite. As he led her down the halls of his penthouse, Nicola took in his Metropolis home. It was even less homey than his manor in Smallville, if that was possible. In fact, Nicola didn't see a personal touch in the place at all. However, there was no denying that the suite was very amazing.

Soon, they walked through a sliding glass door and onto a balcony where a romantic little set-up was waiting for them. Soft music was playing from a stereo and candles were placed around the table. Lex pulled out a chair for Nicola before taking his own seat across from her. Seconds later, a maid-type person walked out of the penthouse and onto the balcony with food to serve them.

"How did you pull this one off in such short notice?"  
"I have my ways."

"Ah."

Next to Lex in some ice was some champagne. After popping the cork off the bottle, he poured some of the drink into a flute that was in front of Nicola and then the one that was in front of her. Nicola raised an eyebrow at him.

"You really are trying to seduce me, aren't you?"

"Is it working?"

Lex's trademark smirk graced his face.

"A little," admitted Nicola.

She picked up the glass and brought the alcohol to her lips. She found in previous occasions that alcohol didn't have an outer-worldly effect on her as it did on a certain with television alien similar to her. In fact, the most that did happen to her was that no matter how much she drank, all she got a slight buzz. She put the glass down after taking a sip, then looked at the dinner in front of her. It was chicken cordon bleau and macaroni and cheese. A smile spread across her face at the discovery, and she looked up at Lex to find him looking pleased with her reaction. They ate dinner in a comfortable silence, reveling in each other's company. Several minutes later, they found themselves done with dinner. Lex stood up, and then helped Nicola out of her chair.

"That was amazing, Lex. Thank you."

Nicola leaned in to give Lex a kiss, and when she was about to pull away, Lex wrapped his arms around her and deepened the kiss.

"The night's not over yet," he told her as they slowly pulled apart from each other.

A new song started to play on the stereo, and Lex seized the opportunity to further his advancements for the night.

"May I have this dance?" he asked, extending his hand out for her.

"Of course," Nicola said with a smile on her face.

She grabbed his hand then placed the other hand on his shoulder. Lex placed the hand he held on his other shoulder then placed his hands on her waist. They then slowly swayed together in time with the music. Nicola closed her eyes and buried her head into his neck. Lex took this opportunity of her closeness and started to place kisses on her neck. Sighing in content, Nicola lost herself in the kisses. She felt Lex's hands that were on her waist move up her back and underneath her shirt.

"Lex," she murmured. "Not here."

Suddenly, the lips on her neck disappeared and she mock-pouted. His hands moved from underneath her shirt and took hold of her hands. He then began leading her back into the house and down a hall until they reached a room. Once closing the door behind them, Lex continued where he had left off on the balcony, slowly moving them towards the bed. Before long, every article of clothing was removed from both of their bodies and the two sought solace on top of the soft sheets that adorned the comfy bed. Their second time making love was just as pleasurable as the first, but unfortunately, due to the impending time constraints of getting the others home before their curfew, they had little time to relish in the afterglow. In fact, their activities were cut short when the cell phone that was in the pocket of Lex's pants that laid on the ground next to the bed rang. With a grunt of annoyance, Lex leaned over the edge of the bed and picked up his pants from the ground so he could answer the phone.

"Luthor," he answered coolly, although he really was annoyed by the interruption.

"Hey Lex, it's Clark. We're ready to get going."

An exasperated sigh managed to escape from Lex's mouth unintentionally. However, Clark didn't take notice.

"Okay. Where do you guys want to be picked up?"

"We'll be waiting outside the restaurant Chez José."

"Alright. I'll pick Nicola up at her friend's house, then swing back for you guys."

"Okay. Thanks Lex."

"No problem, Clark."

With that, Lex clicked the phone off and after placing the phone back into his pants, he dropped the pants carelessly back onto the ground. He turned to his side and looked down at Nicola who had been listening in on the conversation. He leaned down to kiss her soundly on the lips then went back to looming over her.

"The kids ready to be picked up?"

"Yes, unfortunately."

Nicola smiled up at Lex as his obvious abhorrence with having to leave the penthouse and going back to Smallville. She sat up and gave him a short kiss.

"Come on, let's get dressed. It's back to cowtown we go."

She slid off the bed and picked up her articles of clothing off the ground. It only took them a few minutes to get dressed and then they were off to the limo. The ride to the restaurant where Clark, Chloe, and Pete were waiting for them to arrive was short. As they pulled up to the restaurant, they saw the three waiting on the sidewalk, talking amongst themselves. When the limo came to a stop, the door quickly opened and the three teens filed into the limo. Within seconds, the limo was on the move again, making its way back to Smallville.

"So, how was dinner guys?" Nicola asked them after the started rolling down the busy streets of Metropolis.

"Good. Their food was great," replied Pete for all three teens. "How was yours?"

"Fantastic."

"That's good. You never told us who you were meeting. It wasn't that Brian guy, was it?"  
"No. It was someone else."

"Ah, it wasn't the same mystery guy you've gone to see before, is it?"

"Mystery guy?" asked Lex, curious of who they were talking about.

"A couple weeks ago, Nicola left us to meet with some mystery guy, although she never revealed who he was."

"Well, it wouldn't be a mystery guy if I revealed his identity, would it?" Nicola joked.

"This mystery guy anyone we know?" asked Lex.

"Not really. He's from here in Metropolis. We've been kinda seeing each other for a few weeks. It kind of started right before New Years," she replied, trying to hint to Lex that it was him.

"Oh. Is it serious?" he asked, even though he realized it was him she was talking about.

"I don't know. We're just taking it one day at a time, you know?"

There was a silence in the car, and Clark and Pete didn't take notice that Nicola was giving Lex a poignant look. The discussion during the ride home was mostly a recollection of the events they experienced during the visit to Metropolis. When that chatter died out, they did other things to amuse themselves like play hangman and cards. The three-hour car ride didn't seem long since they found ways to keep themselves entertained. After dropping the others off, Nicola and Lex rode the limo back to Lex's manor where Nicola had left her car. From the limo, Lex walked her to her Jeep that was parked in the circular driveway. Nicola unlocked the car, then leaned back on the driver's side of the Jeep and looked up expectantly at Lex. He responded by giving her a deep kiss on the lips.

"I'm going to be busy tomorrow, so I won't be able to see you until the gallery opening."

"That's fine. I think I can live without seeing you for almost forty-eight hours."

"You sure about that?"

A smirk spread across his face, causing Nicola to roll her eyes.

"Oh yeah."

Lex gave Nicola another kiss before he opened the car door for her.

"The limo will pick you up around 3:00 at your house, so you better get out of school early."

"Condoning minors skipping school? Aren't you just the corrupter?"

"I'm sure you can afford to miss part of your last period class once."

"True. Look, I'm totally capable of driving myself and Clark to Metropolis in one piece."

"I'd feel better if you and he rode the limo, though. Please, for me?"

"Fine," sighed Nicola. "If it's really what you want. But I'm still getting ready at Brian's."

"I know. Well, I better let you go before you break curfew."

"Yeah, yeah. I'll see you Tuesday."

Nicola kissed Lex one last time before she climbed into her Jeep.

"Goodnight," he told her as she closed her door.

She started the car and before she drove off, she blew Lex a kiss. As he watched her Jeep descend his driveway, a feeling of content washed over him. Unfortunately, he was unable to foresee events that would occur within the next couple a days that would ruin that sense of calm.

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TBC. Woo hoo! I'm so glad this chapter is finally over. So what did you think? Am I losing my touch? I'm doing okay? Tell me, please, I need help. Next up, the chapter many you have been waiting for: the one that revolves around Rogue. I hope I can finish it soon. I'll try my hardest.


	11. A Rogue, a Brit, and More Unpleasantries

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Disclaimer: I still unfortunately have been unsuccessful in my attempts to gain control of ownership of Smallville, so I still cannot claim Smallville as my own. The only things in this chapter I can claim are the subplots and scenes that have my basically original character Nicola in them.

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Rating: PG-13 for mild cussing

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Author's Notes: Yes, it's true people, I have finally managed to finish the newest installment in my story. Finally a chapter that revolves around an episode. It's definitely not my best stuff and it took painfully forever to write, but I blame that on my muse, or rather, lack thereof. I have lately found no inspiration to help me complete this chapter. I warn you this chapter can be random at times seeing as I've kept up with my tradition of writing in the middle of the night when my brain should be resting, not working overtime like it has. Anyway, what else can I say? There are a few random twists in the plot. I don't know if this flows at all and I hope I didn't involve Nicola too much in the episode's plot. There're some Nicola/Lex scenes, but it's not the lovey-dovey crap I've been pounding you guys with for the last few chapters. Think angst. I'm pretty sure I've lost tons of readers for my inability to write fast enough, which I'm slightly saddened by. But to my faithful readers, I am forever grateful that you stayed interested in my writing.

Ah, and to my wonderful reviewers: Thank you, without you, I probably would have given up on this story long ago.

To Suz: Thanks. That line about Clark was one of my favorite lines in that chapter to write. I know there too much Lex and Nicola stuff in the chapter and not enough Chloe/Nicola/Pete/Clark adventures in Metropolis in it. I tried to write some, but I wasn't sure what they would do during that space of time. I wouldn't mind going back to add it in there, I just don't know what exactly to put.

To Erik1112: Thank you. I know I have a tendency to get into way too much detail, but I think I've gotten better at it. At least I hope.

Okay, so on with the story. Finally:

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For Tuesday, both Nicola and Clark managed to get permission to get out of their last period classes early so they could arrive in Metropolis with enough time to get ready for the gallery opening. When three o'clock rolled around, a limo pulled up in front of her house with Clark waiting for her inside. After getting into the limo, it pulled away from her house and headed for their destination.

Nicola and Clark arrived in Metropolis at 6:30 PM. The limo pulled up in front of a house that was located in the edge of Metropolis, just outside the heart of the city. She looked expectantly at the house she hadn't been to in a couple of months, feeling as though it had been years since she last step foot inside the house. She let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding, and then decided it was time for her to get out of the limo.

"I'll meet you at the Museum at about 8, alright?" Nicola said to Clark.

"Okay. Make sure you be there on time, I don't want to be there, looking like a dope, all by myself."

"Don't worry Clark, I'll be there."

"You better be."

Nicola grabbed her messenger bag that contained her clothes for the gala then she opened the door and climbed out.

"See ya."

"Bye," he replied before she closed the door.

As the limo drove off to take Clark to Lex's penthouse suite to get ready, Nicola walked up the steps to Brian's house. She knocked on the door and minutes later a dark-haired guy opened the door.

"Nicola?"

"Hey Trask, what's up?" she smiled at her old friend.

"Cola, what are you doing here?" Trask asked, pulling her into a hug, which she returned.

"Didn't B tell you?" she asked him as they pulled apart.

"No. He probably wanted to hog you all to himself."

Nicola laughed.

"Well, he just offered to let me get ready here for this gallery opening I'm going to tonight."

"Wait. You're going to the exclusive Luthor Hall Opening? How were you able to bag that invitation?"

"I happen to know the younger, better looking Luthor. He lives in Smallville."

"That's cool."

"So, where is BRuss?"

"Up in his room, writing some essay for his pysch class."

"Great. I'm going to go crash on his study time."

"I doubt he'll complain."

"I'll talk to you before I leave for the shindig, k?"

"Okay."

Nicola left her friend and skipped up the flight of steps. She walked down the short hallway, following the sounds of Linkin Park until she came to a door that was slightly open. She pushed the door open slowly and saw the back of Brian at his desk. She quietly and slowly crept up behind him, then placed her hands over his eyes.

"Guess who?"

"Trask, I told you that game wasn't funny the first time you did it."

Nicola removed her hands and Brian spun his chair around to face her. Nicola made a face.

"Eww...I hope you were joking."

Nicola saw a smile creep over Brian's face.

"Of course I was. See, usually I'm the one to put my hands over Trask's eyes."

"Oh, you're funny."

"I know. Glad you showed up."

"Why wouldn't I?"

"It seemed liked the rich, bald guy would see everything in his power to make sure you didn't come here and instead got ready with the tall kid at his place. I half expected a hit on me after he got all protective on you."

"Lex was not being protective. He was just suggesting what was easiest for him."

"I don't know Cola, he seemed a little hostile to me."

"BRuss, you're overreacting. Anyway, I straightened everything out with Lex, and he understands."

There was a short silence before Brian asked the question that had been on his mind for the last couple of days.

"Do you and Lex go out?"

"Do Lex and I go out? No," Nicola lied weakly.

Brian gave Nicola a knowing look.

"Cola babe, I know you better than you think."

"I know," sighed Nicola, sitting on Brian's bed. "We don't really go out. It's more like, we see each other, once and a while."

Brian got up from his seat and sat next to her on the bed.

"You two aren't bed buddies are you?"

Nicola's mouth went agape then she shoved him off the bed.

"No! How can you think I'm sleeping with Lex Luthor?!"

"Just making sure," Brian said as he got up from off the ground.

Nicola glared at Brian. He crouched in front of her and took her hands in his.

"Look, I'm sorry, it just kind of slipped out," he apologized.

"It's alright."

"I care about you and I don't want to see you get hurt by some rich billionaire who thinks he can have whatever or whomever he wants."

"Lex won't hurt me. And if he does try to, you know I'll hurt him myself."

"I know," smiled Brian.

"Now, I'm going to the bathroom to do my hair and make-up, then I'll be back."

"Okay. I'll be here writing my paper."  
Brian let go of her hands, stood up, and then walked back to his desk.

Nicola grabbed her bag, then walked out of the room and headed for the bathroom. Luckily the bathroom wasn't occupied by one of Brian's housemates, so she was free to use it. Once securely in the locked bathroom, she stared at herself in the mirror, trying to decide what to do with her hair. _French braid?_ _No, too formal. Ponytail? No, too informal. Just brush it and leave it straight? No, that won't work either._

"Why don't I just shave it all off and give Lex a run for his money?" Nicola suggested sarcastically to herself. Nicola let out a deep sigh. This was getting her nowhere. She contemplated to herself for a few more minutes and decided to just go with medium sized curls one would achieve with a regular sized curling iron. When she was done with her hair, she quickly did her make-up, and then returned to Brian's room.

"So on a scale from one to ten, one being 'don't go out in public like that' and ten being 'wow, could she look better,' how does my hair look?" she asked Brian, causing him to turn and look at her.

"A ten, definitely a ten," said Brian. "Do I ever tell you that you worry too much?"

"Yeah, like all the time."

"Well, I heard after the 100th time you hear something, it actually sinks in."

"Oh, then only 1 more time to go and I'll realize I worry to much."

"See, there you go."

"Well, you can go and get out of here so I can change," she commanded.

"It's not like I haven't seen you in your skivvies before."

"That's what I love about you BRuss, always with the jokes. Now, out."

"Fine, fine. I'll be downstairs. Holler if you need anything."

"Okay."

Brian turned and walked out the room, closing the door behind him. Once he was gone, Nicola pulled her dress out of her bag and slipped it on. The dress she chose for the night was a simple, wine-red, spaghetti-strapped dress that hugged her curves and only showed a hint of cleavage. The length of her dress stopped shortly above her knees. She slipped on some strappy sandals with one inch heals that she manipulated to be the same wine-red as her dress. Her final touch to her getup was a thin stringed pearl necklace. Unfortunately, Brian didn't have a mirror to look at so she could survey the results, so she had to walk back to the bathroom after grabbing her bag. Satisfied with the outcome, she grabbed her bag, then made her way downstairs where Brian was and found him and Trask in the living room.

"So, how do I look?" she asked the guys from behind them.

Trask and Brian slowly turned around and their eyes widened.

"Wow, Cola, you look great," said Trask.

"Really?"

"Definitely," agreed Brian.

"Thanks, guys," smiled Nicola. "Now I know who to come to when in the need of an ego boost."

"So, what time do you need be at the museum?" asked Brian.

"About 8. Clark will probably have a hissyfit if I'm not there on time."

"The tall boy throwing a hissyfit? That's something that would be hilarious to see."

"It's 7:38, you might want to leave now so you can beat the traffic," Trask informed them.

"It does not take 22 minutes to get to the museum from here, even when the traffic sucks," replied Nicola.

"Ah, but who knows how long you'll have to wait to get to the front of the building to be dropped off."

"I think someone wants to get rid of us," said Brian.

"I don't want to get rid of you. Well, you Brian, maybe, but not Cola. I just want to make sure Cola gets to her gala on time."

"Right. Well, Cola, shall we head off?"

"Sure, why not," she replied. She then turned to Trask and gave him a small hug. "I'll call you tomorrow or something, okay?"

"You better."

"Bye."

"Bye."

Brian and Nicola walked out of the house and towards the street where Brian's car was parked. Brian opened the passenger door of his Honda Civic for Nicola, then went to the driver's side. As Nicola slung her bag into the back seat, Brian started up the car, and they were off. They sat in a silence for about ten minutes until Brian broke the silence.

"So, how's Smallville?"

"Well, it definitely lives up to its namesake. And it can be little boring."

"That's too bad."

"But Metropolis is only a few hours away, so when I feel like it, I can come up for a visit."

"But you haven't."

"What?"

"You haven't come up to visit."

"Yes I have, I was just here on Sunday, remember?"

"Yeah, but you weren't going to come visit your old friends. You came with your new friends. And you haven't been here before that, at least, if you have you haven't visited me."

"I" Nicola started, but couldn't figure out what to say.

She suddenly noticed they weren't headed towards the Museum, but in the opposite direction.

"Where are we going?"

"Our old spot. Don't worry, you'll still make it to your little gallery opening."

Five minutes later, they found themselves overlooking the downtown area.

"What's up?" she asked when Brian put the car in park.

"There's something I've been wanting to ask you for a while, but for obvious reasons, I haven't had the opportunity to ask until now," started Brian.

"Really?" Nicola replied cautiously, afraid she might already know what the question was. "What's that?"

"Why?"

"Why what?" she asked, feigning dumb.

"You know what I'm talking about. Why? Why did you just cut me out of your life like that?"

"B, you know it wasn't like that."

"Yes, it was. We had a night of passion—"

"A night of passion?" snorted Nicola, interrupting Brian, and earning a cold glare. "Sorry. Continue."

"As I was saying, we made love and then you just disappeared from my life. Were you even going to tell me you were moving?"

"Brian, you don't understand how hard it was for me. I figured if we left things like that, it wouldn't hurt as bad."

"You figured if we shared something special and then you left, it wouldn't hurt as bad? I loved you, Cola."

"I loved you, too, B. I'll always love you. I'm really sorry what I did and will always regret it."

"Then why did you leave without even so much as a goodbye."

"I left things the way I did because I was scared."

"Scared of what?"

"Moving. A new life. A life without you."

"We could have still been together even after your moved."

"Yeah, but for how long? A year? A few months? A couple weeks? The magic of first love is our ignorance that it will never end,'" quoted Nicola. "But deep down I knew eventually it would have. It would have been only a matter of time before you found someone else and forgotten all about me."

"Like you did?"

"I didn't forget about you."

"Oh really? Then what about on Sunday when you were eating lunch with your friends and Luthor? We used to kick it in Metropolis?"

Nicola didn't answer.

"Exactly what I thought."

"I didn't forget about you," repeated Nicola, this time more assertively. "I could never forget you. You are my string of firsts. First major crush. First date. First kiss. First boyfriend. First lover. First everything. No one could ever replace that enormous spot reserved for you in my heart."

Suddenly, before she could react, Brian covered her lips with his own. At first, out of shock, Nicola didn't respond, but seconds later she found herself unintentionally returning the kiss in full force. Their kiss lasted over a minute, then as if she was burned, she pulled herself back quickly away from him.

"We shouldn't have done that."

"It's because of him, isn't it?"

"Lex?"

"Yes, the notorious bald billionaire playboy."

"Partially. Every feeling I have ever felt for you rushed back in that kiss, but over the last few weeks, I can't deny that there's this certainchemistry between Lex and me. I don't want to hurt you or Lex. I think the best thing for everyone is for me to take some time to sort my feelings."

"But you're still going to go to the gala to see Lex?"

"Not to see Lex. You know I'm an art freak. Besides, I promised Clark I'll be there for him."

"Right," said Brian, not really believing her reasons for going to the gala.

Nicola glanced at the clock on the radio and read that it was 8:07.

"I'm late," she announced. "We better get going."  
"Fine."

Brian to the car out of park and drove back to the main road. Soon they found themselves in a strange silence again. Minutes later, Brian spoke again.

"Tomorrow, when you're back in Smallville, will things will go back to how they were before? No calls? No e-mails? No visits?"

"I promise I'll call, or e-mail, or visit, okay?"

"Good."

She felt Brian's free hand grab hold of hers, and she allowed their hands to entwine. The drove the rest of the way in silence. By the time they arrived to museum, Nicola was 22 minutes late meeting Clark. Brian pulled the car up to the side of the sidewalk in front of the museum.

"I'll call you later, okay?" Nicola told him.

"You better."

Nicola leaned in and gave him a peck on the cheek, before grabbing her bag and getting out of the car. She gave him a wave as he started to drive away from the museum. She took out a pocket mirror to make sure she looked presentable as she slowly walked up the steps to the entrance of the museum, all the while hoping that Clark wouldn't kill her for being late. After showing her invitation to the security guard at the door and then dropping off her bag and coat to the coat checkroom, she headed for the Luthor wing where the grand unveiling was taking place.

As she walked into the gallery, she glanced around the room and first noticed Whitney sitting at a table by his lonesome looking especially uncomfortable. A grin spread across her face as her gaze fell upon Clark and Lex who were talking about something, however, the grin faltered when she saw a rather gorgeous bimbo brunette walk up to the two guys with her attention obviously focused on Lex. Soon Clark was walking away from Lex and the mysterious brunette, and Nicola watched as Lex wrap his arm around the brunette to walk in the other direction. Nicola quickly walked over to Clark.

"Hey Clark, really sorry I'm late, when I was catching up with my friend I kind of lost track of time."

"That's alright, all that matters is that you're here now."

"So, who was the woman talking to you and Lex?"

"Oh, that was an old friend of Lex's. I think her name is Victoria Hardwick. She sounded British. I think they went somewhere to catch up on old times."

"Oh," Nicola said softly, trying not to sound affected. "Hey, I saw Fordman around, which probably means the lovely Miss Lang is floating around."  
"Yeah, I saw her a few minutes ago."

"Well, do you want to go over to Fordman and attempt to play nice as we wait for Lana to join him again?"

"Actually, I was going to go get some fresh air."

"Oh, okay. Well then, when you come back in, find me."

"Will do."

With that, Clark left Nicola and she watched his retreating form as he walked towards an exit. Shifting uncomfortably, Nicola glanced around the room to see any sign of a familiar, preferably friendly, face. Unfortunately, none to be seen. A waiter came over to her with a tray of drinks and Nicola grabbed one of the flutes of champagne. She quickly downed the drink without registering any possible consequences that could occur from it, and then placed the empty flute on the tray. Suddenly, as if some uncontrollable force took over her, Nicola started to walk in the direction she had seen Lex and his British "friend" walk in. When she was far enough from the crowd, she glanced around to make sure that no one was watching, and that no cameras were pointing in her direction. With one thought, she shape-shifted, and now resembled a thirty year old version of herself. Her clothes had also transformed, and now her dress was purple and touched the ground. Making sure her heals made no noise, she carefully walked down the empty corridors, deciding that if she was caught, she would just pretend that she had been looking for a bathroom. As she was passing one of the other exhibits, she heard a familiar voice.

"And that concludes our tour of the Metropolis Museum," she heard the male voice say.

"That was an awfully short tour, something tells me you didn't show me the whole museum," she heard a haughty, British accent that she assumed belonged to that brunette hussy she had seen with Lex earlier.

"Now what makes you think that?"

Nicola heard no response, but soon heard what she assumed were panting noises. She slowly walked to where she assumed the voices had come from. While every alarm in her was going off, telling her to turn the hell around because nothing but pain and heartache was in the direction she was headed, her feet kept going. After she stepped through an entryway of a random exhibit, her eyes widened and heart stopped as she saw what she knew but hoped she wouldn't find. On a plush couch-like bench that sat in front of large painting, she saw Lex making out with that Victoria woman. She watched in horror as Lex's hands moved to Victoria's dress to slip it off and as Victoria's moved to Lex's pants.

She felt something wet on her cheek, and brushed it away. It was only then that she realized she was crying. She wanted to walk away from what she was seeing, but it was like a car wreck; she knew she shouldn't watch, but she couldn't help it. It was like some freak magnet pulling her gaze. Quickly, she somehow managed to regain control of her feet and started to back away from the scene before her. However, she forgot to maintain the quietness of her walk, and the clicking of her heels caught the attention of the couple making out. She watched as Lex pulled apart from the brunette and his gaze moved to her. For a second she forgot she no longer resembled the Nicola he knew from Smallville and her heart stopped for a split second. She saw Victoria glower at her.

"Can we help you?" she heard Lex ask her.

It was so surreal. It was as if this were a movie she was watching. When she answered, it was almost as if someone else were saying the things coming out of her mouth.

"No," her voice quivered. "I'm sorry, I was just trying to get away from the gala for a few moments and got lost. I'll go."

With that, Nicola turned around and made a mad dash for the closest exit. Without looking back, she ran away from Lex and his new bimbo, and as she neared the gallery where the Luthor unveiling was taking place, her face, body, and clothes transformed to the original state they were in when she got to the museum. Luckily for her, there were no cameras that captured this and no one around either. She rushed through the crowd of partygoers, ignoring the stares that were thrown her way. As she neared the hallway that led to the exit/entrance of the museum, she heard someone announce that a bus had crashed across the street from the museum. While everyone else rushed outside to see the accident, Nicola went to the coat checkroom and retrieved her coat and bag. She slipped the coat on and started to walk out of the museum along with everyone else.

"Nicola," she heard a familiar voice call from behind her.

'God, I really don't need surgery sweetness right now,' Nicola thought to herself. 

"Lana, I didn't know you were coming to the opening," she said as she turned around slowly to face the person with a forced smile.

"Yeah, Lex invited Whitney, Nell, and me," she replied before noticing the streaks of tears on Nicola's face and red eyes. "You're crying, is something wrong?"

"No, no, I have new contacts on, so my eyes are watery," lied Nicola, trying to get away from Lana as soon as possible. She really liked Lana, but sometimes her optimistic front could get slightly bothersome. They both walked in the direction that everyone else was, which was to the steps of the museum. "Anyway, so what's the big panic about?" Nicola asked, referring to the crowd that gathered outside to see the bus wreckage, trying to change the subject.

"Bus accident. Are you sure you're okay?"

Lana obviously wasn't going to let this go.

"Really, I'm fine. Nothing a carton of mint chocolate chip ice cream won't cure."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"Not really," sighed Nicola, defeatedly. "I just want to go home and crawl into my nice, warm bed."

They were now outside and Nicola glanced across the street to see the bus wreckage. There was a large dent in the front, making it appear as if it hit a pole, but there wasn't any obvious pole it could have possibly hit.

"Clark," she whispered in realization. Clark probably saw the bus when he came out for fresh air and stopped it from a possibly more fatal accident.

"What?" asked Lana, hearing Nicola.

"Huh?"

"You said Clark."

"Oh. Earlier I realized I needed to tell Clark of my desire to go home since we were going to ride home together in Lex's provided transportation. Then I just remembered, when I had arrived, he told me he wasn't feeling very well, so he was going to leave early."

"So, he took the limo without you? That wasn't very courteous of him."

"Actually, I insisted. I mean, I have friends here, so I'm sure I could call my mom and tell her I'm going to spend the night here then take an extremely early greyhound to Smallville in the morning."

"That's ridiculous. Look, Whitney obviously doesn't want be here, so I'll have him give you a ride home."

"What about you? Don't you need a ride from your boyfriend to get home?"  
"Nell's here, so I'll just get a ride from her."

"Are you sure you want me to ride with Fordman, because I can't a hundred percent guarantee we'll make it back together in one piece. I mean, three hours with each other? We'll kill each other."

"Don't be over-dramatic. It'll be fine. Whitney may seem"

"Uncouth?"

"Well, I was going to say he seems like he thinks he's a bad-ass, but uncouth works."

"Do my ears deceive me? Has the word "ass" uttered from the virtuous Lana Lang?" joked Nicola.

"Ha, ha. Look, Whitney may try to keep this hard front, but I promise you, beneath that is a sweet, nice guy." 

"I don't know, the jury still out on that one."

Lana gave Nicola a look.

"Okay, okay, I will accept a ride from Fordman, but only because I need to get the hell out of the Metropolis. And I will try to remain civil. However, if at any point I feel the need to impale him, I will not be held responsible for my actions."

"Fair enough," laughed Lana. "Let me find Whitney and I'll be right back."

"Okay," replied Nicola.

Lana left Nicola and disappeared amongst the crowd to find Whitney. Nicola descended the steps and walked towards the accident to see if she could somehow get a better sense of whether or not Clark was indeed involved in saving the bus. As she crossed the street, a man bumped into her. When she made contact with the man, she seemingly connected with him, and suddenly she was sucked into to a visual reenactment of the bus moving towards a sleeping old man and his dog. Clark came into sight and ran into the oncoming bus, preventing it from crashing into the man and his dog. Clark then zipped out into the distance.

As quickly as she entered it, Nicola snapped out of the vision. She quickly glanced around to see the man who she had bumped into, but she then realized that since she wasn't paying attention when she had bumped into him, it could have been any of the people around her.

'I really need to tell Clark,' Nicola thought to herself. 'I have the feeling this is going to cause a lot of trouble in his life.'

"Nicola, guess who I found?" Lana's voice interrupted Nicola's thoughts.

Nicola turned and found Lana and Whitney standing before her.

"Why, Whitney Fordman. How are you doing tonight?" said Nicola, trying to act civil.

"Fine. You?" replied Whitney, obviously trying to do them same.

"Good."

"So, Whitney will be happy to give you ride home to Smallville. Isn't that right, Whitney?"

"Yeah," he replied, halfway believable.

"Well, that's mighty noble of you. Hey, Lan, it looks like people have lost interest in the accident out here, why don't you go back inside and enjoy the gala?"

"Okay. Now, I hope both of you will be in one piece when I get back to Smallville."  
"We will."

"Yeah, you have nothing to worry about."

"Alright. See you guys tomorrow at school then."

"Bye, have fun," said Whitney, giving her a hug and a kiss.

"Thanks. Drive safe."

"Don't do anything I wouldn't do," Nicola said to Lana, who chuckled.

"Bye, Nicola."

"Bye."

Lana turned and walked back inside of the museum, leaving Nicola and Whitney on their own. There was a short awkward silence, which Whitney took care of.

"Come on Lively, let's get the out of here before I regret telling Lana I would be happy to give you a ride."

"Etiquette, Whitney; get some."

The only response Nicola got from Whitney was a grunt and then he started to walk off towards where he parked his truck. Surprisingly, Whitney unlocked the passenger door for Nicola first, and also opened the door for her. Taken slightly aback, Nicola softly thanked him then climbed into the red truck. It only was a matter of seconds before Whitney was in the car and they started their drive back to Smallville.

Most of the drive to Smallville consisted of the local radio station filling up the car. In fact, the last and only time they talked was when Nicola asked Whitney if they could stop at a gas station an hour into the drive so she buy something to snack on and something to drink during the long car ride. However, about a half-hour prior to their arrival back into Smallville, Whitney suddenly felt compelled to hold a conversation with Nicola.

"So, Lively, tell me, why don't you like me?"

"I never said I didn't like you."

"Please. I can feel the hostility ever time we exchange words."

"I'm sorry, but for some reason I tend not to get along with people who get kicks from stringing up guys in their boxers in the middle of a corn field at night."

"Why am I not surprised Clark told you about that? God, what a self-righteous dick."

"Clark's self-righteous?"  
"Oh, come on. Every day he ogles at my girlfriend and is slowly trying to steal her from me, but somehow everyone seems to think that's fine."

"Clark doesn't try to steal Lana, it's completely unintentional."

"Right. Any guy would get a girl a private, makeshift drive-in movie theater, even if he didn't like her romantically," Whitney said sarcastically.

"Okay, okay, you have a point, but it's not like you have anything to worry about; Lana is completed devoted to you, even after you almost lost her necklace."

"Where the hell do you get your information from? Did you like do a whole background check on everyone when you got here?"

"Uh, no, actually, I just have an acute ability to listen those around me."

"You mean, you're a gossip queen?"

"That'd be a negative, Fordman. Okay, how about this, I will give you a chance, ignoring everything abrogating that I have heard about you and just judge you on from what I have found about you through you?"

"Abrogating?"

"NegativeDubious."

"Oh. Well, I'd appreciate it."

"No problem."

They went back to silence, but this time it was a comfortable one. The two managed to arrive back in Smallville sooner than anticipated. They pulled up to Nicola's house, and once they came to a complete stop, Nicola climbed out of the truck.

"Thanks for the ride, Whit. See you at school tomorrow."

"Yeah, sure."

Nicola closed the door, then walked towards the house. Instead of going to the front door, Nicola opted to use the door to her room in the basement, not wanting the questioning that was bound to come from her mom about her evening. She opened the door to her room, then walked to her stereo and put in one of her mix CDs. She then went straight to her bed where she flopped on top of it. Before she could stop it, tears started to form in her eyes and trickled down her face. A million thoughts raced through her mind, and for some reason, she felt compelled to write in the journal she had neglected over the months.

__

Journal-

Well, it's official. I cannot keep a journal to save my life...and I'm a moron. I know this is only my second entry, and it's been forever since the first one, it just that I haven't had any good reason to write. Scratch that, I've had lots of good things to write in my journal, I just have been too lazy to pen them in here. So, on to present matters and the reason I'm writing in this thing; my defunct relationship with a certain sexy, bald billionaire.

God, how could I have been so stupid? Of course he would move on to a new, actually make that recycled, bimbo once he got what he wanted out of me. And of course the bimbo's a drop dead gorgeous brunette from his past. Am I eternally doomed to be alone? God, I hope not.

I can't believe I ever thought I could possibly love him. I never want to see him ever again. My life would have been so much better if I just stuck with BRuss. Jeez, my life is like a freakin' soap opera. That's all for now.

Nicola

She chucked her journal back onto the desk she sat at, then started to take off her heals off. After that, she walked to her closet to grab a pair of pajamas to get comfortable in. Once in her cozy PJs, she glided her hand across her face, so she didn't look like she had been crying, then walked upstairs so she could wash her face and brush her teeth before going to bed.

She quietly crept up the steps, hoping that everyone was asleep. It was nearly twelve o'clock, which was usually around the time everyone in her family was a sleep, even the ones with irregular sleeping patterns. Luckily, all the lights on the first floor were out, so it was suffice to say that everyone was indeed asleep. As she walked through the kitchen, the refrigerator caught her eye, and she made a detour to it. She opened the freezer door and peered in. The container of ice cream caught her eye and she took it out. She grabbed a spoon and then proceeded to the kitchen table where she ate what was left of the carton of ice cream. After drowning her sorrows in mint chocolate-chip ice cream, she made way to the bathroom and took care of her face and teeth. Once done, she went back to her room to get some much-needed rest. As she walked down the basement stairs, she realized she hadn't informed Clark on her discovery, but realized the Kents were probably fast asleep. She hoped things would be go better for her tomorrow and that she could remember to warn Clark.

The next day, Nicola had woken up at 3 AM, hoping everything of the previous day had been a bad dream. Unfortunately, the disheveled dress on the floor told her otherwise. As much as Nicola wanted to keep the previous night out of her mind, she instead did a lot of reflecting and general thinking, and made a big decision. It was completely random, but it would be the best thing to distract her in the upcoming weeks. To keep herself busy before getting ready for school, Nicola did some neglected homework and read. After a few hours passed, she changed into different clothes for school and then went upstairs to eat breakfast. In the kitchen upstairs, the rest of the family was already eating the breakfast. Nicola made herself some cereal and joined them.

_Time for the happy front_, she thought to herself.

"So, how was the gallery opening?" asked her mom

"Amazing. The things in the exhibit were wonderful."

"What time did you get home last night?"

"A little before midnight."

"Did Clark have a nice time?"

"From what I've gathered."

"Well, that's nice."

Nicola ate more of her cereal and her mom stopped asking questions about the previous night.

"I've decided to graduate early," Nicola informed her mom and step-dad suddenly, causing Juliet to slightly choke on her eggs.

"What?"

"I've decided to talk to my counselor about graduating early."

"And what brought this on?"  
"My counselor told me when I got here that I could have graduated years ago and I've realized that I'm ready for college now. And truthfully, I don't want to have to live in Smallville for another year."

"Well, it's your decision to make and if that's what you want then I'll support you one hundred percent."

"Thanks. Well, I better brush my teeth, then head of for school."

"Okay. Could you do me a favor today, though?"

"What?"

"Well, after pre-school, Joey's going to go to a friend's house to play, so I was wondering if you could pick him up at about 4:30?"

"Sure mom, no problem." 

"Wonderful, thank you. Here's the address," Juliet handed Nicola a piece of paper with the address on it. "And could you take the extra car seat that's in the garage?"

"Yeah sure."

"Great, well, have a good day and drive safe."

"Will do."

Nicola put her bowl in the sink then went to the bathroom to brush her teeth, ignoring the puzzling looks she received from her parental units. After doing she was done with her preparations in the bathroom, she went back down to the basement to grab her bag, and then went outside to the garage to get the car seat. After getting the car seat, she walked to her Jeep and strapped the carseat into the backseat. She got into the car, then drove off. Instead of heading straight for school, she drove her Jeep over to Clark's house in hopes that she could talk to him about certain events of last night before school. When she neared his house she saw him coming out of the barn.

"Hey Clark!" she yelled. "Need a lift?"

"Sure that'd be great," grinned Clark.

Nicola stopped along side him and Clark climbed in.

"So, you missed one hell of an evening," she informed him as they drove off towards school.

"Yeah, sorry about just leaving you like that, something came up."

"Like a bus accident? A big city isn't really the place you should reveal your powers like that."

Clark adverted his gaze.

"Well, I couldn't let the bus just hit the guy and his dog."

"I know, Clark, and that's what I like about you. But, I think we have a problem."

"What?"

"I think someone saw you."

"That's impossible. Everyone was in the museum and the only people I saw on the street were the guy who was asleep and the bus driver."

"Clark, I bumped into someone and I saw the whole thing with the bus. Someone saw you, the only problem is I have no idea who."

Clark went pale.

"This is not good."  
"Well, if you're lucky, the person will pass it off as a hallucination. The feelings I got off from him were definite confusion."

"Yeah, hopefully. So, did anything else important happen at the museum?"

"Nothing I deem noteworthy," replied Nicola, omitting her own occurrences. "But, when you see Lana, and she questions you about leaving early, tell her you weren't feeling well. I saw her, and told her that's why you were gone."

"Thanks."

"Not a problem."

The rest of drive mostly consisted of silence, however, when they neared the school, Nicola decided that she should tell Clark her decision to graduate a year early, too.

"Clark, I have something to tell you."

"Okay"

"I've decided to graduate early."

"You're going to graduate early? Why?"

"I'm ready to get out of high school and go back to a big city for college."

"So, you'll only be here till the end of the school year?"

"Well, possibly till the end of summer, I'm not sure yet."

"And when did you make this decision?"  
"Actually, I've been considering it for awhile now."

"Oh. Now who am I going to have to relate with in the outer-worldly department?"

"Don't worry Clark, with my orbing ability, I'll visit you frequently."

"You better."

Before they could continue, Nicola found herself parking nearby the school, then she and Clark got out.

"Well, I better get to the counseling office to make an appointment. I'll see you later, okay?" Nicola told Clark as they walked into the building

"Alright. See you."

Nicola parted ways with Clark and then went towards the counseling office. Luckily, there was an opening before lunch for her to see her counselor, so she took it. When she went to see her counselor during third period, she informed her counselor, Ms. Thelen, of her plan. Ms. Thelen supported Nicola's decisions, but told her there were a few things she would have to do; such as take a couple of senior required classes as night school. Once things were squared away, Nicola now had to worry about what colleges she was going to, and still could, apply to.

For the rest of the day, Nicola did her best to forget all about the chaos that occurred in Metropolis, and luckily she had colleges on the brain to do that. By the end of the day she only thought about Metropolis twice. She found herself in the Torch offices after school where she focused on loading some pictures she took for the Torch onto one of the iMacs. Clark, Chloe, and Pete were also in the office working on their own things.

"Okay, Chloe, I've loaded the picture for your article onto the computer."

"Great, thanks."

"No problem."

"Another scathing editorial?" Clark asked Chloe.

"Is there any other kind?"

"Clark, what happened to you last night?" asked Lana, entering the Torch.

"I wasn't feeling well. I guess I'm not much of a city guy."

"You can take the boy off the farm, but you can't take the farm out of the boy," commented Chloe.

"Is this your idea of a joke?" an angry male voice from the entrance of the Torch asked, interrupting the conversation. All of the teens' gazes moved to Principal Kwan who had just entered the room with a copy of that week's edition in his hands. "Concerned parents have been calling all morning."

"Well, what have you been telling them?" Chloe asked.

"What the EPA and other environmental groups have been telling them. The meteor rocks are harmless."

Nicola scoffed, earning a cold glare from Kwan.

"People have a right to know about the strange things that happen in this town," countered Chloe.

"The Torch is a school paper. Not your own personal tabloid."

"Are you censoring me?"

"I'm requiring you to do your job, which is to report on relevant school issues. Sports, dances, clubs. I'm relieving you of your duties. The Torch is suspended until I can appoint a new editor."

Before anyone can comment, Kwan stormed out of the office, leaving the five teens perplexed.

"Okay, what just happened?" asked Chloe, probably the most stunned of all of them.

"I think you were fired," replied Pete.

"Chloe I'm sure there's something we can do," said Clark.

"Yeah, he can't do this," added Nicola.

"Let me talk to Kwan," said Lana.

"Not to sound ungrateful or anything, but what do you think can you do?  
"I don't know, but let me give it a shot."

With that, Lana left them to go have a chat with Kwan.

"Do you think she can change Kwan's decision?" asked a skeptical Nicola.

"Not sure, but I guess we'll see," said Clark.

Nicola glanced at her blonde friend and saw the distraught look on her face. She walked over to and grabbed Chloe to help her up.

"Come on, Chlo, you look like you could use a double-caf, non-fat mocha, with an extra shot of chocolate. It'll be on me. We'll see you boys later."

Nicola half-dragged Chloe out of the Torch office.

"Did you drive to school today?"

"Um, no I took the bus."

"Great, then we'll go in my car."

Nicola and Chloe got to Nicola's Jeep and climbed in.

"So, do you want to talk about it?"

"No, not really. It's all kind of surreal."

"Well, we can talk about my night in Metropolis, if you want. It will make your day seem like a field day."

"Oh, that's right, how did last night go?"

"It was eventful, that's for sure."

"How so?"

"Well, first was the confrontation with Brian."

"Oh no, you had the talk?"

"Yep. The proverbial can of worms was opened and it was not pretty. Yelling, harsh words, a kiss, tears, well, mainly my tears"

"Wait, a kiss?"  
"Yeah, he kissed me."

"What did you do?"  
"Truthfully? I kissed him back."

"What about Lex?"

"Lex isn't in the picture anymore."

"Because of Brian?"

"No, because of Lex."

"What did he do?"

"At the gala, in one of the other galleries, I found him making out with some chick from his past, on his way to screwing her."

"Ouch. What did you do?"  
"Nothing, I ran out of there, then came back to Smallville."

"Did he see you?"

"No, thank God."

"So, what are you going to do?"

"Lex and I are through, that's for sure. And I will try to avoid him at all costs."

"And Brian?"

"Not sure. As they say, only time will tell," replied Nicola as they pulled up in front of the Beanery. "Wow, a parking spot right in front of the Beanery. This never happens."

"Hey, maybe your luck is turning up."

"Or maybe, the fates are building me up slightly to only cut me off at the knees."

"Always the optimist aren't you?" said Chloe sarcastically with a grin on her face.

"Of course."

They got out of the car and walked into the Beanery. After ordering and receiving their drinks, they went to the middle of the Beanery where some couches were and sat down.

"You know, if Kwan doesn't change his mind about you not heading the Torch, I'll help rally students together to change his mind."

"I highly doubt most of the student body cares one way or the other."

"Chloe, you're an awesome journalist and you inform the student body on all the weird crap that happens in Smallville. Lots of kids read your articles."  
"I suppose."

"And if that doesn't work, I'll have Kwan killed off for you."

"Oh really? And how will you pull that one off?"  
"I know people."

"You know people?"

"Okay, not people who would kill for me, but"

"Well, thanks."

"Not a problem, anything for a friend."

Nicola noticed Chloe's gaze move across the room.

"Don't look now, but a certain billionaire playboy is headed this way," Chloe informed her friend.

"Great, can I never catch a break?"

"I didn't see you at the gala, where were you?" she heard Lex from behind.

"I was there. And I saw you, but you appeared to have your hands full last night, so I figured why bother with the busy man?" insinuated Nicola, not turning to face Lex.

"Care to elaborate on that one?" asked Lex.

Nicola finally turned and glared venomously at him.

"Does the phrase 'British Bimbo' ring a bell for you?"

"British bimbo? You must mean Victoria."

"Yes, that is the skank in which I speak of."

"Victoria's just a business associate."

"Really, and do you always close your business deals with your tongue down their throat?"

The unreadable expression on Lex face slightly changed, and if one looked hard enough, they might have seen the quick flash of guilt.

"Could we talk about this somewhere else? Maybe somewhere more private?"

"No, because this conversation is over."

Nicola turned back to Chloe.

"I'm going to get a piece of pie, did you want anything else?" asked Nicola, ignoring the fact that Lex was still standing beside her.

"Yeah, get me a slice of chocolate cake, please."  
"Okay, I'll be right back."

Nicola stood up, and when she turned to her left to go to the front counter, she found her pathway blocked by Lex. When she tried to side step around him, he moved in the same direction she went, again blocking her way.

"Lex, move."

"Not until you agree to hear what I have to say."

Nicola gave Lex a seething glare.

"Move or be moved."

"Not until you agree."

"Fine, have it your way."

Suddenly, Nicola her hands on Lex's chest and started to push him backwards until his legs hit a table and now that she had a clear path, she then turned to the left to walk to the Beanery's front counter. Since it wasn't Luthor-like to grovel, Lex instead begrudgingly left the Beanery. After Nicola turned got the cake and pie, she turned and let out a sigh relief when she discovered Lex was no longer in the Beanery. As she handed Chloe her cake, she noticed her raised eyebrow.

"What?"

"Interesting lovers' quarrel, there."

"It wasn't a lovers' quarrel. It was me giving Lex the breakdown."

"I wanted to yell, 'you go girl,' but I didn't feign it appropriate."

"Good call. Plus, it's so 1999," joked Nicola.

"So, what happens now?"

"With me and Lex?"

Chloe nodded her head.

"Not sure. Mostly likely, I'll pretend he doesn't exist, and when I graduate then leave this place, I'll never have the possibility of running into him again, therefore I never have to think about him again."

"That's quite ambitious. Think you'll succeed?"

"At the getting out of Smallville part, yeah. Being able to pretend he doesn't exist until then, not so sure."

"Well, I wish you luck."

"Thanks, I'll need it." Nicola paused, then took a deck of cards out her purse. "Okay, enough with the doom and gloom, let's have some fun."

Chloe raised her eyebrow.

"You walk around with a deck of cards?"

"Hey, you never know when a random game of strip poker's in order," joked Nicola.

"Funny. So, what game are we going to play?" asked Chloe as Nicola shuffled the deck.

"Well, it's this Greek fortune card game my friend Sia in Metropolis taught me."

"Fascinating. So what do you do?"

"Cut the deck, then I'll explain," she told her, holding the deck of cards out for her, which Chloe did. She then started to make five piles with the cards.

"What are you doing?"

"Well, these five cards represent the five letters in the name of the guy that you like, and usually I would ask you how many his name has, but since I knew who you'd pick I skipped that part."

"Alright..."

When she ran out of cards for the five piles, she picked up the last pile she put a card on, and then distributed them evenly to the other four piles. She continued this pattern until she only had one pile. 

"Okay, now I need you think about the guy, which I know won't be hard for you."

Chloe mock glared at Nicola as she flipped the cards on top of each other so you could see still see what the card. After she placed nine cards on top of each other, there were two eights in the pile. Nicola picked up the cards from the bottom eight to the top eight then placed them in a pile.

"Every time you see two cards that are the same, you discard the pile from the first one to the one on top," Nicola explained. A few cards later, the queen of hearts found its place on top of the queen of diamonds. "Now, when you get a pair like this, you put them aside. Each number has a different meaning. For instance, the queen of hearts is you. Any other queen is another female."

Nicola went through the pile twice, and came up with three pairs. She then picked up the cards and slid out the top and bottom cards and placed them on the table. She went through this a few times until she thought there were enough pairs. Next, she took the bottom and top card, placed them aside, and fanned the rest of the pile onto the table.

"Alright, now I want you to pick cards and place them on top of the pairs facedown." Chloe did as told. "And finally, pick one last card, which we'll set aside till the end."

Chloe picked the card, and Nicola put it away from the rest of the cards.

"Now for the fun part, the readings."

"Oh goody," Chloe replied dryly.

"Okay. So a pair of queens and a ten. Since the queen of hearts is on top, and the other is on the bottom, then this means that the guy will choose a relationship with you over this other female."

"Right, like Clark will ever choose me over Lana," Chloe muttered to herself, but Nicola heard her.

"Hey, no commentary till I'm done."

"Fine." 

"Good. Next, this means that you're worried about a date with this guy. You and him will fall in love on a date. You'll hear news about the guy. This one's good; you think about sex with this guy," Nicola laughed, seeing Chloe fidget in her seat. "You love him. You want another guy. You'll date farmboy in the future. Okay this one's hard; these mean worry and think, which could mean your mind is full of worrisome thoughts about this guy. Uh-oh, he'll have sex with another female. You'll separate from him on a date. And you'll hear news about another female. Finally the last card; a ten. You will definitely have a relationship with this guy."

"Less than half of that is feasible."

"Well, it is just a game. I never said anything about it been accurate reading. I could always read your palm," joked Nicola.

"Right. Alright, so now that I've gone through the torture of the game, now do it on yourself."

"Um, how about no? I have no one I want to do it about."

"Do it on Lex."

"Fine," sighed Nicola, shuffling the deck.

She cut the deck, then dealed the cards into nine piles, using his real first name. After getting back to having one deck, she started the process of getting pairs. She went a couple of rounds of trying to get pairs, then decided to stop. She picked cards to put on top of the pairs, placed her last card down on to the table, and then started to pick up a pair of twos to get those cards over with.

"Wait, save those for near the end. Start with that one," said Chloe, pointing to a pair of aces, causing Nicola to crinkle her nose in annoyance.

"Fine," sighed Nicola, picking up the pair, and then turning around the card on top of them. "There will be love on a date."

"Interesting. Continue."

"We'll have a relationship, which obviously has already came to pass," Nicola read the cards meaning. "I will separate from him. I'm worried about another guy"

"Brian," she and Chloe said at the same time.

"I think that I want him. I'm worried about a separation. I'll hear news about a woman and myselfOkay, this obviously is an old reading because most of this is old news."

"Finish it anyway."

"Fine. I will hear news about this guy," said Nicola. She then looked at the next three and frowned. Chloe pulled Nicola's hand down and looked at the cards. It was a pair of twos and a three. 

"What does it say?"

"There will be sex in the future for me and this guy...Alright, that's never going to happen again," Nicola said, then realized what she accidentally revealed to Chloe. "There's not a chance you could forget you heard that, is there?"

"Wait, wait, wait, you and Lex..."

Nicola diverted eye contact.

"Okay, I'll take that obvious lack of eye contact as a yes. When did that go down?"

"Saturday night."

"The night before we went to Metropolis? Well, no wonder you were the first person in the limo with Lex. Was that it?"

Nicola didn't answer, but the look on her face told her it wasn't.

"Oh my God, that's what you did when you and he left us in Metropolis, didn't you? I think things got more interesting."

"Look, there's one more group and then the final card left," said Nicola, grabbing for the cards, trying to change the subject, but unfortunately, that made things worse. When she looked at the card that was face down about the pair of threes she held in her hand, she discovered it was a two, meaning the same thing as the one before. "Alright, game over."

"No, you still have that one to tell me, and then the last card," Chloe said, grabbing her hand. "Threes and a two? Sex in the future. I think the cards are telling you something Nicola."

Nicola groaned.

"These cards hold no truth. It's just a game of chance."

"You keep telling yourself that. So what's the last card?"

Nicola turned it over.

"A seven; I'm worried. Well, at least some things are truthful in this game."

Chloe laughed at her friend. Nicola grabbed for her cup of coffee and took a sip, but found her cup empty.

"I'm going to get another cup, you want anything while I'm up there?"

"No, I'm good, thanks."

"Alright I'll be right back."

Nicola got up from her seat and took her cup up to the counter to get her refill. After she received another drink, she walked back to where she was with Chloe.

"So, honestly, do you think Lana can change Kwan's mind?" asked Chloe as Nicola sat back down.

"Truthfully I'm a little skeptical. I'm not sure if Lana's power of persuasion goes beyond teenage boys. But hey, who knows, maybe she can suade Kwan."

"Hopefully. The Torch is my baby. I don't know what I'm going to do without it."

"We could always publish a rebel paper," joked Nicola.

"Right, we'd only need a few hundred dollars to do that and the only person around here that we know could afford that is your newest ex-flame."

"Then we can do an e-zine. Look, Chlo, your world isn't going to come crashing down because you don't have the Torch. The Chloe Sullivan I know is stronger than that."

"Thanks," beamed Chloe.

"You're welcome."

Nicola glanced up at the clock on the wall in the Beanery, and read that it was almost 4:30. She realized she had to go pick Joey up from his friend's house, so she quickly downed her coffee, causing Chloe to give her a strange look.

"I just realized I have to pick Joey up in like ten minutes. Is it okay if we go pick him up, then I can take you home?"

"Sure."

Nicola and Chloe stood up and then left the Beanery to go to Nicola's car. They got in and Nicola took out the address of Joey's friend's house. It was only a five-minute drive from the downtown area where they were. Chloe waited in the car as Nicola strolled up to the house. Soon, Nicola was back at the Jeep, helping Joey into his car seat. As Nicola got into the car, Chloe greeted Joey.

"Hey kiddo, how are you?"

"Good. How are you, Cwowie?" asked Joey.

"I'm great. Did you have fun at your friend's house?"

"Uh-huh. We played soccer."

"Cool."

"Joe, we're going to drop off Chloe then head home, okay?"

"Okay."

They drove a few miles and soon reached Chloe's house. Chloe hopped out of the car after they came to a stop in front of her house.

"Thanks for the mocha, the cake, the pep-talk, and the ride. In that order."

"Not a problem."  
"Well, I'll see you tomorrow."

"Alright, see ya."

Chloe closed the passenger door, then strode up to her front door. As Chloe entered her house, Nicola took her car out of park and drove down the street to home. Once home, she took Joey out of the car, then carried him inside the house, before seeking sanctuary in her room. She pulled out her backpack after deciding to throw herself into her homework. A couple hours later, her phone rang and she answered it to find a frantic Clark on the other end.

"Can you come over?"

"What's up?"

"Could you please just come to the loft? I'll explain it then."

"Yeah, sure, no problem. I'll be right there."

They hung up the phone, then Nicola went upstairs to grab her coat and informed her mom that she had to go to Clark's house to help him with something. She walked outside and then, making sure her mom wasn't watching, she orbed herself to the barn. She walked up the stairs of her loft and found Clark gazing out of his loft, but this time it wasn't for Lana watching. She knocked on the wooden railing, which caused Clark to turn around to face her.

"Hey," Clark greeted her, weakly.

"Hey. So, what's so urgent?"

"Remember how you thought someone saw me in Metropolis when I stopped the bus?"

"Yeah, why?"

"He's a cop."

"How do you know?"

"He came to visit me."

Nicola's eyes went wide open at the discovery.

"He what? When? What happened?"

"Earlier this afternoon. He dropped a generator on me."

"Oh my God. What does he want?"

"I'm not exactly sure. He wants me to help him do something."

"That doesn't sound shady," Nicola commented sarcastically.

"He wanted to meet me tomorrow, but my dad's going to meet him instead."

"Wow. What can I do to help?"

"Nothing now. But I'm glad you came to listen. I needed someone other than my parents to talk to."  
"Well, I'm glad I could be of service. I better go home before my mom has a cow about me being out so long on a school night. I'll see you later."

"Bye."

Nicola strode down the steps of his loft and then out the barn, deciding it was a nice night for a walk and she could use that time to think. As she walked out of the barn, a shiny silver Porsche zoomed up the dirt driveway and up to the barn. She started to walk in the other direction, trying to avoid the driver of the car, but unfortunately, she wasn't fast enough, and a hand grabbed her arm, turning her around. She closed her eyes, took a breath, then looked up at the face of the assailant who stopped her from her escape.

"What?" she snapped, wanting to get away from him.

"What are you doing here?"

"I came to see Clark, not that it's any of your business. I was just leaving, so he's all yours."

Nicola turned to leave again, but was stopped by Lex.

"Nicola, will you stop being so stubborn and listen to my side of what's happening?"

"You call it being stubborn, I call it being smart. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going home."

She removed Lex's hand from her arm and then strode away from him. When she was sure she was out of sight behind the barn, she orbed to her room to be sure that Lex couldn't follow her any further. As soon as her molecules reformed in her room, she flung herself down on her bed, finding herself emotionally exhausted. First the incident with Lex and now she has to deal with this guy who found out about Clark's power. This wasn't going to be a fun week. A sigh escaped her mouth as her eyes fluttered shut, all her strength draining. She slowed her breath and tried to clear her thoughts. She knew she wouldn't be asleep for another couple of hours, so the only thing she could was to mediate and try to forget her troubles, at least for the night. Her cell phone rang a couple of times that night, but she ignored it. Instead she laid on her bed the rest of the night, concentrating on not thinking. Hours passed, and she found solace in sleep. When she woke early the next day, she found herself looking forward to school, hoping it would distract her from the weirdness in her life.

The school day quickly went by with only a few bumps on the road. At lunchtime, Clark informed Nicola that he found out more information about the police officer from Lex. They decided that after school, she would meet him in the Torch to help find more about the shady cop. In her last class of the day, she received a phone call from the office telling her there was something waiting for her in there. When school ended, Nicola made her way to the main office to see what had arrived for her. Once she entered the office, she looked expectantly at secretary who was busy smelling a bouquet of flowers in her possession.

"Excuse me, I was told something was in the office for me?"  
"Yes, Nicola. These are for you," said the secretary, holding out the flowers. "I wish someone would send me flowers during the day, especially ones as beautiful as these."

Nicola weakly smiled at the secretary and thanked her before leaving the office. As she walked down the hall, perplexed, she got a good look of the flowers for the first time. She realized that they were Stargazer Lilies, her favorite. She held the flowers up to her nose and took in the exotic smell of the flowers, and then noticed the card that was stuck in it. She grabbed the small card and opened it to read whom it was from.

_We need to talk. Crater Lake Park. 6 PM. ~Xander_

She creased her brow, and was confused for half a second before she realized who it was. _Lex. Someone wants to keep his anonymity,_ she thought to herself. She tucked the small note into her purse, then thanked the secretary before she walked out of the office. She walked down the hall in a semi-daze, contemplating what she should do. Yes, part of her missed Lex, but another part, a much larger part, was too angry with him to want to see him. Plus she was afraid. Afraid that if she let Lex get his piece in, the part that missed him would give in and forgive him, leading up to the inevitable let down again.

She walked down the halls in autopilot and found herself heading towards the Torch where she was meeting Clark. As she neared the Torch office and smelled the flowers for the millionth time, a body collided with hers, and she looked up from the flowers to find a distraught Chloe. Nicola observed the usually strong intrepid reporter and saw she was in tears.

"Chloe?"

"Hey. Nice flowers, who they from?" Chloe asked, forcing her megawatt smile to grace her face.

"Thanks. Are you okay? What's wrong?"

"Why don't you ask Lana?"

The bitterness and venom in her tone were evident.

"Ask Lana? Why? Is this about her talk with Kwan?"

"Just go to the Torch, you'll find your answers there."

Chloe started to walk away from Nicola.

"I'm coming over later okay?" she called after Chloe, but Chloe ignored her and kept walking.

Confused, Nicola kept making her way to the Torch offices. She found the door was slightly ajar when she approached it. She heard the voices of Clark and Lana, and stood outside the door to listen in.

"It's not your fault, Lana. I know you didn't mean for this to happen."

"I just thought that Chloe would be happy that at least the Torch wasn't shut down."

"I know."

Taking the pause as an opportunity to make her entrance, Nicola pushed the door open the rest of the way and walked into the Torch.

"Hey guys. I just saw Chloe. What was wrong with her?"

A nervous look was exchanged from Lana to Clark before Clark decided to fill Nicola in on what happened.

"Lana talked to Kwan."

"And?"

"Good news, The Torch can run it's next issue in two days."

"That's great. Shouldn't Chloe be happy about it?"

"I didn't tell you the bad news."

Nicola's eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"What's the bad news?"

"Chloe is no longer the editor."

"She's not? Then who is?"

There was a small pause before Lana answered her.

"Me."

"You? How did that happen?"

"Well, I told Kwan what I wanted to tell him, then he told me if I had so much passion about it, then I should run the paper."

"He what?"

"I told Chloe she could ghost-write until we got her reinstated."

"You told her what? Ghostwrite? So, she'd work for you, but not get any real credit?"

"It's not that bad of an idea," Clark defended Lana.

"And let me guess, that's what you told Chloe?"

"Yeah."

Nicola groaned.

"Well, no wonder she was upset. I'm going to talk to Chloe. I'll see you two later."

Nicola turned and walked out of the Torch office. She made her way to her car that was in the parking lot, and then drove to the Beanery to grab some coffee for her and Chloe and some chocolate cake, before heading to Chloe's house. When she arrived at the Beanery, she found Mr. Kent and some guy in a heated argument. She ordered her drinks and desert, then curiosity got the best of her, so she slowly crept closer to hear what they were talking about.

"I will not let you exploit my son," Mr. Kent seethed.

Nicola's eyes went wide at the realization that the man Mr. Kent was speaking to was the police officer who found out about Clark's powers. She sat down at a nearby open table so she could hear more.

"I've spent the morning going through the local police files," the man announced to Mr. Kent. "Clark's name comes up quite a bit."

"Clark's has never been in trouble a day in his life, Phelan."

"No arrests, but he's been around a lot of crime scenes. Now, maybe that's coincidence or maybe it's just his natural instinct to get involved."

"Okay. I will give you whatever you want. You just stay way from my family."

"But I want your son."

"No."

"I'll be in touch," Phelan got up and leaned into Mr. Kent's ear. Nicola couldn't quite hear what he said, but it sounded like, "Of course if you don't agree, I will tell the world what I know. Best case, Clark's under a microscope, worst case, he's a freak in a jar. Either way, his normal life is over."

Suddenly Mr. Kent grabbed Phelan and slams him onto a table.

"Don't push me!"

"Whoa! Easy there, Mr. Kent," Phelan said a little louder so the people in the Beanery, and Mr. Kent released him from his grip. "We were just talking. You know, if I were you I'd learn to keep that temper in check. That could get you into a lot trouble."

The last part sounded like a threat, and Phelan gave Mr. Kent a smug smile then he turned and walked out of the Beanery. Wanting to get more info on this Phelan character, she followed him outside of coffee shop. As they walked down the main street, Nicola, after making sure no one was paying attention, used her telekinetic power to remove his wallet from his back pocket and fall to the ground. She swept it up, then opened it up to glance at his ID. Samuel Phelan. She closed the wallet up then hustled up to catch up with him.

"Excuse me, Sam Phelan?" she called from behind him, causing him to turn around to face her.

"Depends. Who's asking?"

There was no mistaking the suspicion in his voice.

"You dropped this in the Beanery," she replied, holding out his wallet for him to take.

Phelan frowned, and his hand moved to his back pocket to inspect it. Sure enough, he found it empty. He looked at her again, finally getting a good look of her. The corners of his lips turned up and he leered at her. He reached out and took the wallet from her, their hands making contact in the process.

"Thanks, doll," Nicola faintly heard Phelan say, but wasn't paying total attention to him.

In that split second where he thanked her, Nicola connected with Phelan. She saw what he had already done to Clark and then something weird happened. She also saw what Phelan had in store for Clark, which wasn't good. As soon as he retracted his hand, the premonition-type vision was gone, and she found herself looking in the eyes of the shady cop.

"No problem."

She turned to walk away from him, but his hand grabbed her arm to stop her and turned her around to face him.

"You know, to show you my thanks, why don't I buy you dinner later tonight?"

"Sorry, not interested."

She removed Phelan's hand from her arm and started to walk away from him. She quickly made her way back to the Beanery where her drinks and desert were waiting for her and she grabbed them before going to her car. Once in her Jeep, she pulled out her cell phone and dialed Clark's number hoping to catch him at home.

"Hello?" answered a woman's voice.

"Hi, Mrs. Kent. This is Nicola. Is Clark there?"

"Hello, Nicola. I'm sorry, Clark's not home yet."

"Oh. Well, when he does get home, can you tell him I called?"

"Sure, I'll do that for you."

"Thanks, Mrs. Kent."  
"You're welcome."

Nicola hung up the phone and tossed it on the passenger seat in frustration.

"Damn it," she cursed to herself, starting the car. "Where are you Clark?"

She sits in the car for a few minutes, hoping that maybe Clark would pass by so she could warn him about Phelan's plans for the evening that involved him. From far down the street, she saw Clark's tall figure walking towards her, passing the Beanery where she had just been. She turned off her car, then pulled the keys from the ignition before climbing out of the car and running down the street towards Clark. Unfortunately, before she was able to reach him, a car pulled up in front of Clark, cutting off his pathway. As she was about to get to the car, Clark got in and it sped off.

She cursed to herself again and realized she was too late. Phelan was taking Clark to Metropolis to do some dirty work for him and there was nothing she could do to stop him. Nicola sighed in defeat, then made her way back to her car to drive to Chloe's house. She couldn't do anything about the Phelan situation at the moment, so she might as well focus on another friend's crisis. She got into her car and maneuvered her way to Chloe's house. When she pulled up to Chloe's, she found the Falcon in the driveway. She got out of the car and walked up the porch to the front door with the goodies in her hand. She managed to knock on the door, and minutes later, the door opened, and a red-eyed Chloe greeted her.

"Hi," said Nicola. "I come bearing gifts."

Nicola handed Chloe the coffee and cake, which she gratefully accepted.

"Thanks," Chloe smiled weakly.

She turned and started walking back into the house. Nicola followed Chloe into the house, shutting the door behind her. They made their way to Chloe's living room, and they took a seat on the couch.

"So, how are you doing?"  
"Okay, considering I lost my pride and joy to one Lana Lang."

"Well, I'm sure after Lana has reign over the Torch for a couple issues Kwan will realize the err in his judgement and reinstate you as supreme ruler of the school paper."

"Yeah right," scoffed Chloe. "Once Kwan makes a decision, it's rare for him to change his mind."  
"Chloe, stop being so pessimistic."

"I can't help it. I can't believe Lana did this to me. Not only does she manage to hold all of Clark's attention, she has to take away the only thing Clark and I do together anymore."

"Chloe, you and Clark do more then the Torch together."

"Right. Between hanging with Pete, his homework, chores, and his newfound friendships with Lex and Lana, we've hardly spent much time together outside of school and the Torch in the last couple of months."  
"I assure you that regardless if you run the Torch or not, Clark and you will do things together. Trust me, before you know it Kwan will come to his senses and give you the paper back."

"I can only hope."

"I can't believe Clark took Lana's side on the matter. Oh wait. Scratch that. Yes I can."

Chloe groaned at remembrance at what she said to Clark about that.

"What?" asked Nicola at Chloe's groan.

"After he said that he wasn't taking sides, I might have said something like, 'Yeah right, Clark. You're completely objective in all things Lana.' And then said a couple of immature things afterwards."

"I wish I could have seen his face when you said that."

"It was kind of like that deer in the headlights look."

"Oh. He's good at that one."

They both started laughing really hard.

"So enough about me and the drama that is my life, let's talk about you," said Chloe, once the laughter died down. "You never told me who the flowers were from. Was it ex-boyfriend number one from your Metropolis days or your more recent ex-boyfriend number two?"

A sigh escaped Nicola's mouth before she answered.

"It would be number two."

"Really?" asked Chloe, perking in interest. "And what does he want?"

"He wants me to meet him at six because he thinks we need to talk."

"Are you going to meet him?"

"I don't know. A part of me wants to, but another part is telling me to not give him a chance to talk. What would you do?"

"Okay, I'm pretty sure I'm not the one you should be asking that, considering the state of my current love life, or lack thereof. Maybe you should ask Pete, he tends to have it easier with the opposite sex."

"Yeah, but none of Pete's relationships seem to sustain over three dates."

"That's true. Well, then the only thing you can do is go on your own judgement."

"That's what I was afraid of," Nicola sighed before standing up. "Well, I better get going. I need to clear my head if I decide I'm going to talk to him."

"Okay. Good luck with that," Chloe replied, standing up to walk Nicola to the door.

"Thanks. And look, use today to sulk, but tomorrow, you should start brain storming to figure out how to get your baby back."

"Will do."

"See you tomorrow."

"See ya."

Nicola walked out of Chloe's house and descended the porch stairs to her car. Once in her Jeep, she pulled her cell phone out to call Clark's house again. While she doubted he was home yet from whatever mission Phelan had taken him on, she figured it wouldn't hurt to check. She used her powers manipulate her vocal chords in case Mrs. Kent answered the phone; she didn't want to make Mrs. Kent suspicious by calling again in such a short length of time, and she realized calling too much would seem borderline stalkerish.

Instead of a soft feminine voice, a rough male voice answered the phone.

"Hello?"

Since it wasn't Mrs. Kent, she undisguised her voice and went back to her normal one.

"Hello Mr. Kent. This is Nicola. Is Clark home by chance?"

"Oh, hello Nicola. Clark's actually not home yet. You wouldn't have any idea where he might have gone, do you? He usually checks in with us before going anywhere."  
"Your guess is as good as mine," she lied to the elder Kent. "Sorry. But if I do end up finding him, I'll let him know you want him to check in."

"I'd appreciate it."

"Bye, Mr. Kent."

"Good bye."

She hung up her cell phone and dropped it back down on the passenger seat once again. A sigh escaped her mouth as she ran a hand through her hair. She put the key in the ignition and started her car. She glanced at the clock and saw that it was 4:17, which meant she had about an hour and forty-five minutes before her meeting with Lex. She decided she needed more time to think, so she started took the car out of park and then headed for Crater Lake Park. On her drive to the park, she determined that the best thing she should do would be to help Clark get out of whatever situation he had put himself in. The only way she could do that was get to the place she saw in her vision when she touched Phelan. She had been practicing developing her powers over the months, so she figured it wouldn't be that hard to orb to the location with a little concentration.

When she got to her destination, Nicola put the car into park and took a breath. She closed her eyes and concentrated on the image of the building she had seen in Phelan's thoughts. She felt her molecules pulling apart and opened her eyes when she felt that she had zoomed on her target. After years of orbing, she had modified a way to only have her eyes appear so no one would notice her in the area. She saw that she was on a crowded sidewalk, so she floated away from that spot to a nearby alleyway. Making sure no witnesses were around, she recollected her molecules and reformed her body. She stepped out of the alleyway and back onto the sidewalk she had come from. She glanced around the area and noticed familiar skyscrapers surrounded her. This was definitely Metropolis. She looked up at the building next to her and decided that this was definitely the building she saw in the vision. While there were many buildings that looked exactly like this one, there were a couple of distinctions that hinted it was the one she was looking for. She glanced at her watch and read that it was now 4:42. It had been only about a little less than an hour since she saw Phelan and Clark rush off, and it takes about three hours to get to Metropolis, two if you're speeding, so they probably hadn't arrived yet.

"Great," she muttered sarcastically to herself.

There wasn't much she could do if they weren't in Metropolis yet, so the only thing she could do was orb back to Smallville and come back to the building later. She walked back to the alley she had come from and then orbed back to her car that sat in Smallville. Once back in her car in Smallville, she pulled the keys out of the ignition and then slipped out of her car. She walked over to the nearby lake and sat at its edge to devise a plan for what she would do. She closed her eyes and the wheels in her mind started turning. When she had connected with Phelan, she saw a flash of an apartment number. It was 517. That probably was the room Phelan wanted Clark to break into. So, what she would do is, in an about an hour, orb back to the building and go up to that room. Then, she would wait for Clark and do whatever he needed her to do to help him. Satisfied with her solution, her mind floated to other situations she was faced with, starting with Chloe's predicament. Granted it wasn't really her problem, but she considered Chloe one of her best friends since coming to Smallville, and when her friends were in trouble she was going to help bail them out. She figured that since she didn't have any form of a relationship with Principal Kwan, her talking to him wouldn't help matters. Maybe she could talk to Lana to see if they could brainstorm on a more effective way to convince Kwan to reinstate Chloe, something that would catch his attention. How to do that she had no clue, but she would figure out that out when the time came. Her thoughts finally traveled to the reason she was sitting in a park on a semi-cold winter afternoon, something she had been reluctant to think about thus far.

She knew she had to keep her defenses up when he came because she was sure that she might give in too easily when she was face to face with Lex. Her plan was to listen to what he had to say with an open mind, but not forgive him. No matter how sincere he sounded, how completely irresistible he looked, she wouldn't allow herself to let him charm her into letting him back into her life. As far as she was concerned he blew it big time. When it was all said and done she planed to completely cut him out of her life; at least beyond being acquaintances because their paths were bound to cross in a small town like Smallville. And add to the fact the one of her good friends was best friends with the guy, so by association they might see each other more than she would want. Nope, there was no point in fooling herself that once this conversation was over she'd never see the bald, cheating bastard ever again.

She closed her eyes and took a breath she hadn't realized she had been holding, then unclenched her fists that she unintentionally balled. When she opened her eyes, she looked up at the lake, and noticed for the first time since arriving at the park that the lake was still frozen from the cold winter Smallville had been experiencing recently. Deciding to take a break from all thoughts that muddled her mind, she stood up and stepped out onto the ice. She slid along the ice and spun around.

'I wish I had my ice skates,' she thought to herself.

Then a thought occurred to her; maybe she could try orbing them to her from her house. She had about an hour to kill, so the least she could do was try to fine-tune some of her powers. She closed her eyes and focused on where she put her skates in her room. Her mind called out for her skates and she held open her hands for them. She felt a small array of power surround her, and she opened her eyes to see the molecules of her skates forming in front of her. As they materialize into her hands, Nicola squealed in delight. She sat back down on the ground and took off her sneakers then placed her skates on her feet. She put her hand on the surface of the frozen lake and willed the molecules to be even harder than they were before so she wouldn't fall through the ice and join Sean Kelvin as a popsicle underwater.

Granted she never mastered anything past a single axle in her year of ice skating lessons, but she wasn't a total klutz on the ice. After stepping onto the ice in her skates, she lost herself in spins and figure eights. She was so immersed in her skating that she didn't notice the silver Porsche pull up next to her Jeep or the Armani-clad young Luthor walk out towards the lake. However, the sound of his smooth voice filling her ears pulled her out of the trance the skating had her under.

"You can skate," he stated rather then questioned.

"I went through a Kristi Yamaguchi phase," Nicola shrugged as if that explained it. 

She gracefully glided over to him where he stood next to her shoes she had left on the ground and plopped down so she could change back into her sneakers. When she finished tying the laces, Lex extended a hand to help her up, but she declined and got up on her own. She bent down and picked up her skates from the ground, then started walking to her car.

"Alright, _Xander,_" she said, emphasizing on the name he put on the card as she passed him. "Let's get this over with."

She opened her driver side door and then tossed her skates into the backseat. She proceeded to grab the flowers that she had left on her passenger seat before closing the door, and then held the flowers out to Lex who had followed her to the car.

"What, you didn't like them?" Lex asked her, but he didn't take them from her.

"No, I love the flowers. I just can't accept them."

"And why's that?"

"The flowers are a symbol of your apology. If I accept the flowers, I'm symbolically forgiving you, which I don't plan to do."

"You haven't even heard what I have to say yet. How can you determine if you're going to forgive me or not?"

"Trust me Luthor, when I have my mind set there's not much you can do to change it. However, I'm willing to hear you out, just so I can hear what lame excuse you have."

"Well, I'm not taking them back. They're a gift for you."

"Fine, then I'll just give them to someone else."

She reopened her car door and tossed the flowers back onto the seat. She closed the door again, then leaned back on the door with her arms crossed and looked expectantly at him.

"Well?" she asked, waiting for him to finally explain himself.

"Victoria Hardwick and I go way back. Her father's company and LuthorCorps are cutthroat competitors, and now that she's an executive vice-president of the company, now she is too. When I saw her at the gala, I knew she was up to some scheme with her father to try and thwart the company through me."

"And you'd figure you give your old flame a good fuck to see if you could get her to tell you the goods?"

"Well, when you say it like that..."

"So, you slept with her for the sake of the company? Well, I hope it was worth it Lex. I hope you got all the valuable information you needed."

She turned to open her car door so she could leave, not wanting to have Lex see her breakdown, but Lex's hand prevented her from doing so.

"I have no feelings for her. I care about you."

"Oh, that makes me feel a world of better," she replied sarcastically. Tears formed in her eyes and she did not turn to face him. "So, you'll have sex with someone you have no feelings for, but you're willing to hurt a person you claim you care about? What great morals you have there Mr. Luthor."

"I swear to you, I never meant to hurt you. When I saw her last night the thought of overthrowing Sir Harry over-rode all other thoughts. It's just business."

"Sleeping with someone is just business? I hate to think what that makes you," she sneered venomously. She took a much-needed breath of air, and continued. "Look, I know how succeeding in the business-world and proving something to your father is important to you, but that doesn't excuse you for what you did."

"I know."

She closed her eyes and pressed her forehead on her car window. She felt Lex's hands on her arms, turning her slowly around to face him. She slowly opened her eyes and looked up at him, tears rolling down her cheek. Lex moved a hand to her face to brush her tears away, but she retracted at his touch.

"Is it over between you two?" she asked with a sharp intake of breath.

"She's staying at the mansion with me," he admitted. "But only so I can fully implicate my plan to screw her and her father over."

"And literally screwing her is part of the plan?"

"I know how Victoria's mind operates, and that's the only way of action that will work."

Nicola paused, her mind calculating what to say to that. 

"Well then, good luck with that," she said finally.

The bitterness she felt couldn't be filtered out of her voice as she spoke what she wanted to be her parting words. She turned again to get into her car, but Lex wasn't about to allow her to leave yet. He grabbed her arm and turned her back around then placed his hands on the car on both sides of her to trap her.

"That's it? _Good luck with that?"_ he repeated her words.

"Well, I was going to go with, 'Go to hell you fucking sadistic, twisted cheating bastard. I hope you and your British bimbo have a wonderful life,' but I thought it was too long."

Lex said nothing to this and instead his eyes sought hers. Nicola tried to look away, but somehow she was unable to resist looking into the pair of blue eyes that belonged to the person she was trying her hardest to loathe with every atom of her being. As she stared into his blue eyes, she randomly noticed there was a hint of gray in them, and she found herself going into a small trance-like daze.

"I'm sorry," he said finally, the words spoken softly, but they were still able to break Nicola out of her trance.

"Wow, a Luthor actually apologizing for something. Must be the first sign of the Apocalypse."

Lex gave her an indignant look at her scathing sarcasm, but Nicola ignored it and continued.

"And exactly what are you sorry for? That you hurt me? That you got caught? That you ruined what could have been a wonderful relationship? What?"

"For everything. I'm sorry you were hurt. I'm sorry you had to see me with Victoria. I'm sorry that this has put a snag in our relationship. But you've got to understand that this is something I have to do. My company depends on it."

"So, you're willing to throw this," Nicola gestured between him and her. "All away?"

"It doesn't have to be that way," Lex insisted.

"Yes, yes it does."  
"Why? Why does it have to be that way?"  
"Because I'm not going to be in a relationship with a guy who's sleeping with another woman. Especially when that's the relationship that everyone will know about and mine is the one that's kept secret. I can't do it."

Lex removed one of his hands from her side and cupped her face with his newly freed hand. She found herself unconsciously leaning into his touch and closed her eyes, relishing in the tingle of sparks that flew through her at his touch. Suddenly, she felt his lips capture hers and she unintentionally lost herself in the kiss. Several seconds into the kiss, she realized that she was close to fully giving in to him and her eyes flew open. She pushed him back away from her.

"Stop. Don't do this."

"You're willing to ignore this chemistry between us? You can't deny you feel it too."  
"I have to."

"So, you're not willing to give us a second chance?"

"I'm willing to give us a second chance when Victoria's out of the picture and when you're willing to get your priorities straight. I'm sorry Lex, but we're over."

She gingerly put a kiss on his cheek, tears threatening to spill once again, before swiftly turning to her car and slipping into it before he could stop her. Hands slightly shaking, she put the keys into the ignition and started the car. She turned the car around then sped away from the lake and more importantly Lex. As Lex's figure got smaller and smaller, the tears that had been threatening to fall finally escaped. She drove down the dusty Smallville roads aimlessly, unsure of where she was headed. Nicola didn't drive far until she was all-out sobbing. She managed to pull herself together enough to decide to go home to calm down. It wasn't too long before she found herself rolling up to her house.

She parked the car and killed the engine. She lowered her head onto the steering wheel and closed her eyes, trying to recollect herself. After taking several slow, deep breaths, she opened her eyes again and sat back in her seat. She glanced at the fluorescent green clock on her radio that glowed at her and realized she had only turned off the engine, but not the battery. However, that thought was instantly forgotten when she saw the time. It was 6:13, more than an hour and a half after her unplanned visit to Metropolis. That meant that Phelan and Clark could be arriving in Metropolis right as she sat in her driveway. She wiped the last tears out of her eyes, her feelings of sadness put on a hiatus because of her determination to help her friend, as she turned of the engine of her car and slipped the keys into her pocket. With a fresh resolve, she took a breath, then orbed back to the alley she had visited earlier that evening. As she walked towards the entrance of the building, she glanced around the streets for Phelan's car, but didn't spot it anywhere. Nicola took the elevator to the fifth floor, and then quickly searched for apartment 517. Deciding it would be best to knock on the door first before trying to break in, Nicola paused in front of the door and gave it a couple of raps. After minutes passed, she decided that no one was home, so she used her powers to unlock the door for her. Once she successfully unlocked the door, she crept inside and did a surveillance of the area to see if Clark had arrived yet, or if anyone was home. She discovered that the place was empty, so she walked back to the first room she entered in the apartment to start a search for the picture she saw in her vision that hid the safe Phelan wanted Clark to get into. Within seconds, she realized portrait in question was on the wall in the front room she was in, and she then moved the portrait to get into the safe. She unlocked and opened the safe to find it untouched. She let out a breath of relief, glad that she hadn't missed Clark yet. She closed the safe again and then placed the portrait back in place.

She paced in the room and quickly thought of her possible options. The only thing she really could do was wait for Clark in the room with the safe and help him however she can. Minute after minute passed, but soon she heard some noise from behind her where the door was. Fearing it was the owner to the apartment she had broken into, she quickly moved to the nearby closet she found when she was making sure the place was empty and left it open slightly so she could see who had entered the apartment. She heard footsteps move through the room and soon she saw a familiar tall dark-haired male in her line of sight. Relieved, she slowly crept out of the closet and up behind the new intruder as he pensively stared at the painting that hid the safe from view.

"Fancy meeting you here, Clark," she said coolly, causing him to jump.

He quickly turned around and faced her.

"Nicola? What are you doing here?"

"I could be asking you the same thing, but I already know the answer to that one. See I ran into your Metropolis Police officer this afternoon, and after connecting to him, I discovered his plans for you, which might I say aren't good. Clark, why are you doing this for him?"

"Look, I have a plan, okay? Don't worry about it."

"Are you sure Clark? Because, I don't think there's an easy way out of this. Phelan will see to it."

"Trust me, I've got it under control," Clark said in a calm voice. He finally took in Nicola's appearance, and for the first time, noticed her blood-shot, tear-stained eyes. "Have you been crying?"

"That's not important. So, what do you have under control?" she asked trying to divert the subject.

Deciding to hold of that topic for now, Clark started implicating a plan.

"I need you to call the Metropolis PD and tell them there is some suspicious behavior at this building, okay?"

"Alright"

Nicola pulled out her cell phone to make the call as she watched Clark removed the picture from the wall, and then he used his super strength to rip the door open. He searched through the safe until came across the folder he was looking for.

"Could you hold onto this for a second?" he asked Nicola as she anonymously tipped the police about illegal activities at the building she was at.

She outstretched her hand in answer, and as Clark handed the file to Nicola, he ripped the safe from out of the wall then carried it to a nearby window. Using one arm to hold onto the safe, he used his free hand to open the window before tossing the safe out of it. As she hung up the phone after telling her nearby police will arrive within minutes, Nicola heard the sound of metal being smashed.

"Hey, Phelan!" Clark yelled out the window.

He hustled over to Nicola and grabbed the file from her hand.

"I'll see you back in Smallville," said Clark walking away from her.

"Wait, Clark. It'll be faster if I orb you back. Just meet me at a diner called Daisies' Joint. It's just outside of Metropolis on the way to Smallville."

"Sure," he replied before he zoomed out of the apartment to where Phelan was waiting next to his car.

She orbed to the outskirts of Metropolis, nearby the 24-hour diner she had told Clark to meet her. She strolled inside the diner and took a seat on a barstool at the counter. An older woman with graying hair came over to her with a bright smile on her face.

"Long time no see, stranger," drawled the waitress.

"Hey there, Ms. Johnson. Good to see you again."

"Honey, I've told you time and time again to call me Katherine, you're old enough now. Plus calling me Ms. Johnson makes me feel even older than I am."

"Oh you're not old M..." she paused, realizing she slipped and almost called her Ms. Johnson again. "Katherine."

"That's sweet of you dear, but I'm definitely not in my prime anymore. Anyway, We've been missing you here. How's Smallville treating you and your family?" she asked as she poured Nicola a cup of coffee.

"Fine, just fine."

"And how are you?"

"Great," lied Nicola with a bright smile on her face, focusing on stirring teaspoons of sugar into the coffee.

"Honey, the red eyes suggest differently. Did something happen to the family?"  
"No, like I said, everyone's fine."

"Then what happened? Let me guess, it's about a boy?"  
"Something like that..."

"Well, then let me get you a piece of our famous apple pie on the house..."

"Oh, you don't have to..."

"I insist."

Katherine quickly moved to get a piece of pie with whipped cream on top and brought it back to her.

"So, what brings you to my diner tonight?" she asked as she placed the pie in front of Nicola.

Nicola picked up a fork and took a bite from the warm pie in front of her before she replied, "I'm meeting a friend here."

"Isn't it a long drive and a little late on a school night to be meeting someone here?"

"Don't worry, _mom," joked Nicola._ "We're headed straight for Smallville after he gets here."

"He?" repeated Katherine, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, he. And, no, he's not the aforementioned boy in our conversation."

"Well, if he's not the boy who caused the red eyes, then is he the boy that's coming to whisk you off your feet to make you forget about the aforementioned boy?"

"As nice as that'd be, no."

"Too bad. I could use one of those myself," Katherine said with a mischievous and infectious grin.

"Man, have I missed you Katherine."

"Same here sweetie."

The bell that hung over the entrance door rang and Nicola instinctively glanced over at the door to see who it was. The instant she saw the familiar yellow aura that surrounded the newest customer, a rush of relief washed over her.

"Clark," greeted Nicola.

"I got here as fast as I could," Clark told her as he took a seat on the stool next to her at the counter.

"I'm sure you did."

There was a short silence that was filled by the clearing of Katherine's voice. Nicola looked up at her and realized from the look on her face that she wanted an introduction.

"Clark, I'd like you to meet Katherine. She was my neighbor in Metropolis, and my coffee supplier her at this diner. Katherine, this is my new neighbor in Smallville, Clark."

"Hello Katherine, it's nice to meet you," said Clark, extending his hand for her to shake.

"Same here," replied Katherine as they shook hands. "So, what can I get you Clark?"

"Oh, I don't need anything, thank you."

"Alright, well if you need anything, just give me a holler."

Katherine walked away from the two teens leaving them on their own.

"Want some of my pie? It's not as good as your mom's, but it's still pretty damn good."

"No, that's okay."

Nicola took another bite of pie and didn't saying anything else to Clark, even about his excursions that night. She decided to enjoy her coffee and pie before the inevitable talk with Clark. However, Clark would see to it that she didn't get a quiet moment with her pie.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"About what?"

"About what had you all upset tonight."

Nicola didn't answer and instead contemplated her answer. She couldn't tell him the truth, but she knew Clark's savior complex would prevent him from giving up the subject.

"Remember the mystery guy I had a date with a couple days ago?"  
"Yes, what about him?"

"We broke up."

There was silence from Clark as he contemplated the right thing to say. However, the best he could manage was, "I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault Clark. Anyway, I'm over it now, so don't even worry about it. What you should be concerned about is Phelan."

"Don't worry, after tonight, I don't think Phelan will be a problem."

"You better hope so."

"So you want to tell me exactly how you found where Phelan took me?"

"It's a long story. Let me finish this pie, then I'll orb us back to Smallville, okay?"

"Sounds good."

Nicola quickly finished her pie then told Katherine goodbye before walking with Clark outside the diner. The two walked away from the diner to a secluded area where no one would see them. Nicola touched Clark's arm, then she orbed him and herself back to Smallville. When their molecules reformed, Clark found himself back in his loft.

"Alright, I believe it's now time for you to spill the details," said Clark as he sat down on the couch in the loft.

"Fine...so, I went to the Beanery after I left the Torch and found Phelan having a heated discussion with your dad. After he left, I followed him and got hold of his wallet-"

"Should I even ask how you got a hold of the wallet?" interrupted Clark.

"It's one of the many of advantages of being extraterrestrial, Clark. Anyway, I got his attention and when I handed him back his wallet, we touched, thus allowing me access to his inner thinkings. I saw the building and apartment number that he was planning on taking you, so I concentrated and managed to orb to the correct building. I came back to Smallville to take care of some business, then later orbed back to the apartment, which brought us to the point where you came in."

"You did all that because you were worried about me?"

"Yeah, of course."

"Thanks," said Clark with his trademark boyish grin.

"Any time."

There was a quiet moment between the two of them before either of them spoke again.

"Well, I better get going. Stay out of trouble, okay?"

"I'll try."

"Night Clark."

"Night."

Nicola got up from the couch before she descended down the loft's steps. She decided that instead of orbing back to her house she would walk the short distance. It took her about five minutes to walk the stretch of farmland that was in between the two houses. Once home, she found herself being interrogated by her mother about her afternoon activities. After apologizing for not checking in and explaining she was helping her friends that afternoon, she excused herself to her room to do some homework.

The rest of Nicola's evening was uneventful and she spent most of it not dwelling on the previous events that did occur. When she woke up the next day, she busied herself with doing research on colleges, seeing which ones she could still apply to. Hours passed and as she was getting ready for school, she heard her cell phone ring.

"Talk to me," she answered her phone informally.

"Could you come to my house as soon as possible?" she heard a male voice on the other end ask weakly.

"Clark? What's wrong?"

"I'll explain it to you when you get here. I'm in my kitchen."

"Alright, I'll be over as soon as I can."

"Thanks."

With that, Nicola hung up and quickly finished getting ready for school. She grabbed her bag and keys, then yelled a quick goodbye to her family before rushing out the door to her car. She sped as fast as she could down the road that led to the Kent farm. Once she drove up the drive, she saw cop cars parked near the barn. She parked her Jeep then quickly walked up to the back door that led to the kitchen. She found Clark staring at a broken beam, his back to her as she opened the screen door.

"Clark? What's going on? What's with the cops?"

Clark turned around slowly to face her, and she saw that he had been crying.

"They came to arrest my dad."

"Your dad? Why?" asked Nicola, confused on why the cops would arrest an upstanding citizen like Mr. Kent.

"Apparently Metropolis PD tipped Smallville's finest that they would find a dead body on our property."

"Phelan," said Nicola, understanding what had happened. "But they didn't find one, did they?"

Clark frowned, his facial expression indicating that they did.

"Oh God. That guy is ruthless," Nicola said, disgusted.

"Yeah, he is. He came over right afterwards. I was so angry with him. I wanted to kill him. I almost did."

"Well, that explains the broken beams. So, he's still alive and kicking though, I assume."

Clark nodded his head weakly.

"What am I going to do, Nicola? It's all my fault that my dad's in jail."

"Clark, you can't blame yourself for what Phelan's done, okay?"

"Yeah, but if I hadn't stopped that bus in Metropolis I wouldn't put my family in this situation."

"If you hadn't stopped the bus, that old man and his dog would have died, and I know you wouldn't have been able to live with yourself if you allowed that to happen. That's what I love about you Clark. Yes, it completely sucks that this evil, horrible man saw you use your powers and is trying to take that to his advantage. But you can't change what's happened. All you can do is figure out what you can do to get out of it."

"Easier said than done."

"I know," sighed Nicola.

She glanced at her watch and saw that they were running late for school.

"We better get to school or we're going to be late."

"I don't know" started Clark, but Nicola cut him off.

"Your parents wouldn't want you to miss school."

"I guess you're right."

"Of course I am."

Nicola smiled smugly at Clark, who returned a weak smile.

Clark grabbed his backpack off the kitchen counter then he and Nicola headed out of the kitchen to her car. When they finally arrived to school they were ten minutes late. The day seemed to pass by slowly for both of them and somehow the news of Mr. Kent's arrest spread like a wildfire through the school. After school, Nicola headed to the Torch after dropping by the college and career center, knowing Clark might stop by to help Lana with the paper and to hide out from the whispering amongst the masses. When she arrived at the Torch office, she found Lana alone looking as though she was ready to throw a computer across the room.

"Hey there," Nicola greeted Lana as she stepped into the room.

"Hi," said Lana, her voice laced with exhaustion.

"How's it going in here?"

"Honestly? Not good. I have no idea how I'm going to be able to put this together by tomorrow to give to the printers in the morning."

"If you want, I can help later today. I need to swing over to the Beanery really quick to put in my two weeks, but other than after that I'm free."

"Put in your two weeks? You're quitting your job at the Beanery? Why?"

"I have to take a couple of night classes so I can graduate early, so my weekdays are pretty going to be pretty full."

"Wait, you're graduating early? Am I out of the loop or what?"

"Don't worry about it, I haven't told many people about it yet."

"Alright, well, I'll definitely be here for a while."

"Okay. I'll be back shortly."

Nicola started walking back towards the door, but then suddenly realized that she had been looking for Clark before she offered Lana her help. She turned back around to face her brunette friend.

"By the way, you haven't by chance seen Clark have you?"

"You actually just missed him. He came in here about fifteen minutes ago"

"Oh, okay. Well, see you in a few."

"See ya."

Nicola turned back around and marched out of the Torch to her car. She drove straight to Main Street and then searched for a place to park. The only spot she found was far away from the Beanery, so she would have to walk to the coffee shop. As she approached the Beanery, she saw Lex and Clark talking nearby. By the time she made it to the entrance of the Beanery, Clark had briskly walked away from Lex and towards the other direction. Instead of going into the Beanery right away like her instincts were telling her to, she watched Lex from the distance she stood at. She watched him sigh and rub his hand over his head in an act of frustration. Suddenly, as if he knew she was watching him, he slowly turned his head to face her. For a brief second, they made eye contact, but Nicola quickly turned her gaze away and stepped into the Beanery. She went to the front counter to ask if the manager was in, and as she waited for Zoe to get the manager, she saw Lex enter. She frowned and walked toward a nearby table to get further away from him. Unfortunately, he didn't acknowledge this as an attempt to ignore him.

"I saw you watching me out there," he said to her, smirk in place.

"I wasn't watching you. I saw you talking to Clark and I was curious what you two were talking about, so I was watching your body language for clues."

"So you admit it, you were watching my body. I knew couldn't resist me."

Nicola rolled her eyes in annoyance, and then noticed behind him that the manager had come out of the office.

"If you'll excuse me, I have more important things to attend to."

She got up from her seat and walked over to the manager for her meeting. Lex watched as Nicola disappeared into the manager's office before he decided to leave the Beanery. After Nicola put in her two weeks notice and explained why she was doing so, she came out of the office and looked around the coffee shop for any sign of Lex. She sighed in relief as she saw that he wasn't in the coffee shop anymore. She ordered herself a vanilla latte and then left the Beanery to return to the Torch office to help Lana.

When she arrived back at the Torch, she found Lana clicking away at one of the iMacs. Nicola walked over behind Lana and peered over her shoulder to see what she was working on.

"How's it coming?"

"No better than a half an hour ago. All I wanted to do was help Chloe, and then it all just blew up in my face."

"So, what are you working on?"

"The layout for the front page."

"Don't we have a layout editor?"

"Yes, but he currently is missing in action for some reason. And I still need to edit a good chunk of the other articles."

"Okay, how about I edit the articles for you? I'm pretty fast at it."

"That'd be great, thanks."

Nicola sat down at another iMac and then started to go through the submitted articles that were all typed up and ready to go.

"So, have you written an editorial, yet?"

"Editorial? No, I haven't even thought of one yet."  
"Well, how about something about Chloe no longer being the editor of the Torch?"

"No, that didn't even cross my mind."

"Oh. Well, I was just wondering. I guess it's already gone through the grapevine anyway, so it would be old news anyway. It was really just an idea. Kwan probably wouldn't appreciate the bad publicity anyway."

Lana was silent for a moment then a smile spread across her face.

"You're a genius, Nicola."

"I am?"

"Yes. It's perfect. Kwan wants a school-related article. I will give him a school-related article."

"Okay," replied Nicola, still slightly confused on what Lana was talking about.

For the next twenty minutes the only sound coming from Lana was the clicking noises she produced from the furious typing on the keyboard. Nicola was in the zone of editing and completely unaware of the quiet noises around her. However, when Lana yelled "Done!" chirpily from the computer she sat at, it almost startled Nicola out of her seat as she jumped from the sudden noise.

"Done with what?"

"Come take a look."

As Nicola walked over to Lana, she couldn't help but notice the proud grin that graced the brunette's face. When Nicola neared, Lana rose from the seat so Nicola could take her place at the computer. Nicola sat and read what was on the screen before her.

"Kwan Crushes Freedom of Speech," she read outloud. "Catchy headline."

Nicola quickly read the rest of the article and grinned with approval.

"Good job, Miss Lang."

"Thanks."

"Where are you putting it?"

"Front page."

"Nice. That will definitely catch his attention. You think he'll reinstate her?"

"I hope so. But regardless, I think it's something I have to do."

"Well, I think Chloe will appreciate it."

Nicola stood up from the computer and went back to the one she was editing off of. A few hours passed and together Lana and Nicola managed to complete the next edition of the Torch. Lana put the files onto the disk that would be given to the printers and put it into her bag so she could give it to the printers in the early morning so the edition could come out by lunchtime. Nicola offered Lana a ride home, which she gladly accepted. After she dropped Lana off at her house, Nicola decided to stop by Clark's house since they didn't really have a chance to talk about the Phelan situation since that morning. As she nears the farm, she sees one of Lex's cars just off the Kent farm. She uses her mind warp power so that Lex wouldn't see her car as it drove past him. She peered down the Kent drive and saw Clark getting into a car with Phelan again. Her brow furrowed in annoyance, wondering what Phelan was up to with Clark now and why Lex was parked off the side of the road. She drove further away down the road and put into park as she waited for the car to emerge onto the road. Still using her mind warp ability to remain unseen by all other parties, She soon saw the car drive onto the road and it soon passed her. Shortly thereafter, Lex's car followed. Curiosity and concern overcoming her, Nicola took her car out of park as she decided she would follow the two cars to wherever the hell they were going.

Fifteen minutes into the drive, Nicola realized that Phelan must have been taking Clark up to Metropolis again. She sighed in annoyance, unhappy about the three-hour drive that was ahead of her. When they finally got into the city, Nicola took in her surroundings, trying to figure out where they might be headed. Soon, she found Phelan's car slowing down and eventually parking. She watched as Lex drove past the parked car, probably hoping to go unnoticed, which he was. Nicola parked several hundred feet before she would have reached Phelan's parked vehicle and sat in her car, waiting for Clark and Phelan to get out of the car. She suddenly realized that Phelan had pulled up in front of the Metropolis Museum.

"What are you up to, Phelan?" she wondered outloud.

She mentally cursed herself for not trying honing in on her mind-reading skills, but decided it wouldn't hurt to see if she could read someone's mind even from the distance she sat at. As Phelan emerged from his car, Nicola concentrated on him hard. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes so she could focus.

"Retirement package here I come!" she heard a cheerful male voice say.

Nicola opened her eyes in shock that she actually heard Phelan's voice in her head. It had sounded as if he was right next to her in the car. She closed her eye once more and concentrated again. This time the image of a jeweled breastplate flew into her head, quickly followed by Phelan swimming in a pool of green bills. She realized immediately that Phelan wanted the jeweled breastplate that was in the exhibit in Luthor Hall. She watched as Clark and Phelan walked to the side of the building and then disappeared from her sight. Nicola contemplated her options for a couple of minutes before deciding there really wasn't much she could do. She wouldn't be of any help to Clark because she would be going into the situation completely blind. So she decided to sit and wait things out, and if she sensed Clark was in any danger, then she would try to come to his rescue.

During next the several minutes that passed, a series of events took place before her eyes. She watched as Lex walked up to the line of newspaper dispenser boxes, while guards ran out of the museum and down the steps to where he stood. Lex put in some change and opened the newspaper dispenser up. Curiosity killed Nicola as she watched and waited for Lex to reveal whatever it was that brought him to open the dispenser. Soon, she saw Lex toss what appeared to be an alarm clock to one of the guards that stood nearby. Seconds freeze as a bag flies out of a high window in the Museum and lands next to the guards and Lex. One of the guards peered into the bag and Nicola saw his lips moves as he informed everyone else what was in the bag. The guards and Lex suddenly start running up the steps and into the museum then gunshots were fired, leaving Nicola to wonder exactly what was happening. Curious as to what was in the bag, she opened her car door and started to walk towards it when a sudden blur that would have gone unnoticed by the untrained eye whizzed past her. Realizing it was Clark, she tried to use her telekinetic powers to stop him from continuing on his rush away from her. Mentally applauding herself as she saw Clark slowly come into sight, she made sure to hold him into place.

She knew that Clark was probably confused as why and how he was suddenly stuck in place in the middle of the street and her lips curled into a grin at the thought of the confused look that probably was spread across his face. She slowly lifted him slightly in the air and slowly turned him around to face her. When Clark was fully turned around, she saw that his eyes were wide in surprise, causing her to laugh.

"What's with Metropolis, you, and trouble?" she asked him as she walked up closer to him, letting his feet finally touch the ground again.

"Nicola?"

She could tell by his tone that he was definitely confused by the situation that was before him.

"In the flesh."

"WhatWhat are you doing here?"

"I was wondering the same thing about you."

"Phelan wanted me to get him the breastplate in Luthor Hall."  
"Ah. Well, how about I give you a ride home and you can tell me all about your nightly activities? My car's right over there."

"Sure."

They walked over to her Jeep and soon drove off back towards Smallville. During the drive Clark told Nicola all about how he went to see his dad at the jail and had a heart to heart with him about the Phelan situation. Then he told her how Phelan arrived at his loft and threatened him and his family. Finally he told her what happened inside the museum, which answered a lot of Nicola's questions about what had been going on as she watched helplessly.

"What I want to know is how you knew I'd been in Metropolis tonight?"

"Well, I decided to stop by your house after I dropped Lana off at hers. When I neared your farm I saw Phelan and you getting into his car, so I decided to follow you guys," she told him, leaving Lex out of the story.

"Oh. So you drove three-hours just to see what Phelan wanted to do with me?"

"Yep, pretty much."  
"Thanks."

"You're welcome."

They were quiet for a few minutes when suddenly it was as if he just realized that Nicola had said Lana's name.

"Wait. Why were you dropping Lana off at her house tonight?"

Nicola smirked at his question, amused at his continual obsession with Lana.

"I was helping her out with Torch stuff."

"Oh. How's she doing with that?"

"Well, we finished the edition if that means anything. She wrote an article about Chloe's firing from editor position. It was good stuff. Definitely will get Kwan's attention."

"Really? I can't wait to read it."

"I'm sure you can't," replied Nicola offhandedly.

"What you mean by that?" Clark said, slightly offended by her comment.

Nicola chided herself, not meaning to really say that outloud.

"Nothing, ignore me."

"No, you meant something by it. What?"

Nicola sighed, realizing she might as well come clean with her opinion.

"I meant nothing by it. It's just, it's not exactly a secret about your feelings for one Miss Lang."

She watched Clark out of the corner of her eye and saw him shift uncomfortably in his seat.

"Lana" started Clark. "Lana and I are just friends."

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean you can't have more than friendly feelings for her."

"I" stammered Clark, not really able to form a coherent sentence.

"Clark, when I connected with you that day, I saw several of your thoughts and memories. Many of them were of Lana. Did you seriously think I hadn't seen any images of her floating through your head?"

"I"

"Don't worry Clark, it's not like I'm going to tell the world, or more importantly Lana. Your secrets' are safe with me. You should know that by now."

Clark could tell by Nicola's tone of voice that she was slightly perturbed by the fact that it seemed as though he didn't trust her with the truth about his feelings for Lana. However, it wasn't a matter of trust. He had never admitted to anyone about his feelings for Lana and planned on keeping it that way. He trusted Nicola, after all, she knew about his alien origins and hadn't told a soul. Then again, she understood that since she herself was of extraterrestrial status. But right now, confiding in her about his longtime crush on Smallville's resident fairy princess wasn't something he was ready for. So for now, she'd have to be content with thinking she knew the truth rather than him divulging it to her. 

Finally he replied, "I do," thinking it was the best and only response for now.

The rest of the ride was dominated by the sounds of a local radio station. Nicola pushed the speed limit, which made Clark a little nervous, but he didn't say anything about it. The drive back was quicker than the drive to Metropolis, and by the time they pulled up to Clark's house, they had only reached the two and a half-hour mark since leaving Metropolis. She put her car in park as she waited for Clark to exit her car. He opened the door and stood next to the open door outside the car for a couple of moments as if trying to find the right words to say.

"Thanks for all your help," was all he managed, which had sounded better in his head than when he actually said it out loud.

"Anything for a friend," Nicola replied smiling weakly, obviously still effected by the Lana-talk issue.

There was a moment of awkward silence as both mulled over what to say next. Nicola took the initiative before Clark could though.

"Well, I guess I'll see you tomorrow then."

"Yeah, tomorrow."

"Night Clark."

"Night."

Clark closed the passenger door and watched as Nicola backed up then drove down his driveway. After a couple of minutes, Clark finally turned to walk into his house.

The next morning, Mr. Kent had been released from jail after evidence sprouted that Jonathan Kent was not responsible for the dead body found in the barn. Glad order was starting to get restored, with a spring in her step, Nicola strode over to the Torch office after school to see what was going on. As she approached the entrance, she watched as Principal Kwan left the Torch with a frown marred on his face. Wondering what was up, she peered into the office and found Chloe and Lana talking. Not wanting to interrupt, Nicola stood outside the door and wait till they were done until she entered the room. Try as she might, Nicola could not ignore whatever conversation they were having and started to eavesdrop.

"It's just— the paper's kind of my identity and it's like the only thing that Clark and I do together and when I saw you here–" she heard Chloe say to Lana.

"You thought I was trying to cut Clark out of your life?"

"Nobody ever said I was rational."

"I want to be friends with you, Chloe. But I don't want to stand between you and Clark."

Nicola heard the sincerity in her voice as she said that.

"Oh no. Don't worry. There's nothing between us. We're just good friends. How about you?"

"Same thing. We're just friends."

"Good. I'm glad we got that out of the way," said Chloe, the cheerful tone coming back in her voice. "Now, let's see what you've messed up since I've been gone."

Taking this break in conversation as her cue, Nicola strolled into the Torch casually.

"Hey guys, what's happening?"

"Nothing. Just restoring some order at my Torch," replied Chloe with a big grin on her face.

"YOUR Torch? Kwan reinstated you as editor?"

"Yep. Just a few minutes ago."

"Congrats Chloe. That's awesome," said Nicola, giving Chloe a hug.

"Thank you, but I really have Lana here to thank for it."

Nicola turned to Lana who grinned sheepishly.

"Oh, I didn't really do anything."

"Don't be modest Lana. I read the article. Great writing."

"Thanks."

"You really should write more stuff for us."

"Oh come on Lana, don't you want to see your name in a byline more often?" encouraged Nicola.

"It did feel good to write that article."

"That's what I thought. Make sure you're here when we assign articles on Monday, okay?"

"Okay, I will. I better get going though. I'm supposed meet Whitney in a few minutes."

"Alright, see you later Lana. And thanks for everything."

"Any time."

"Bye Lana."

"See ya."

With that Lana exited the Torch office, leaving Chloe and Nicola to themselves.

"So, how much of our conversation did you eavesdrop on?" asked Chloe as soon as Lana was out of earslength.

"I'm insulted. I would never eavesdrop on anyone," said Nicola pretending to be offended, but at Chloe's raised eyebrow, she couldn't help but smirk in amusement. "From the point where you said the Torch was your identity."

"So basically, everything?"

"Pretty much. If it's any consolation, I didn't hear anything new or completely revealing. Except you're a bad liar, but I don't think Lana noticed. And Lana wasn't really that convincing either."

"What are you talking about? I'm a good liar."

"Okay, maybe to the average shmoe, but to meChloe, you're about as convincing as Clark."

"Okay, now I'm insulted. Clark's a God-awful liar."

"Like I said Chloe, I can just detect your bullshit better than others. Don't worry, I don't think anyone has caught on to what you're like when you lie."

"Right."

"Come on, Clark and Pete wanted to meet up at the Beanery to celebrate the release of Clark's dad."

"Alright. I suppose I can put off checking damage control for one day."

"Good thinking."

Chloe and Nicola walked together out of the Torch and towards the parking lot so they could get to their respective cars. The two quickly arrived at the Beanery where Clark and Pete were waiting for them with coffee on hand. By the end of the day, normalcy was finally found. Well, as normal as Smallville could get anyway.

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TBChopefully.

So, what did y'all think? Better than expected? Worse? Exactly? I know there were major flaws in this chapter, but I'm trying. Seriously, where's a muse when you need one? Anyway, please do me a big, big favor and review please because input on what I should do for my next chapter will be really, really great. Remember, it's most likely going to revolve around the episode Shimmer. I have a few ideas, but more would be appreciated. And if you just want to post a general comment or maybe a question to what the heck I was thinking at a certain point in this story, then go ahead and do so in your review. Thanks.


	12. Accusations, Obsessions, and Confessions

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Disclaimer: Try as I might, I have been unable to wrestle control of ownership of Smallville out of the hands of the WB bigwigs, so all I can do for now borrow their characters and episodes for my own non-profiting purposes.

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Rating: PG-13 for mild cussing

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Author's Notes: No, this is not a hallucination people, I actually finally updated my story. Amazing, huh? I'm sorry for my ineptness, but my Smallville muse has been unhelpful and midway into this chapter I lost inspiration. However, little by little, I managed to finish it up. I hope the fact that this chapter was about 40 pages long in my word processor makes up for it. I had a lot of fun writing my take on the Shimmer episode, and I hope you enjoy reading it. I know I lost many more of my readers in my inhability to write quickly, however, I hope that by posting I will earn some new ones. Anyway, to my faithful readers, I again thank you for staying with me and putting up with my slowness.

Mixer- I know my chapters are long. In every fic I write, there usually at least twenty pages long in the word processor. I can't help it, I like to write a lot of details, but I hope it's a good thing.

Suz- Thanks for reviewing again. Oh, I added a little to chapter 10 with a Clark, Chloe, Pete, and Nicola adventure. It's not much, but I hope it's enough to satisfy a little of what you wanted. Thank you for being understanding about the uncooperative muse.

Thestringbean- I have absolutely no clue how I write so much. I go into each chapter hoping it will be like five pages each, and the end up being at least five times that. I hope you were able to read some of this story. Anyway, I read your story. I really liked it. I hope you continue it soon.

Christina- Thank you for the compliments. I'm glad you liked Nicola sticking it to Lex. I enjoyed writing it. I went into writing this story planning on making Nicola and Chloe becoming good friends because I think Chloe really deserves one and God knows Lana isn't always a great one to have around. Anyway, I hope you like the developments I put in the Chloe and Nicola friendship in this chapter and I hope you enjoy my take on Shimmer.

Pippergurl- Thanks for the nice review. I know I will definitely put Chloe and Clark together, however, it might just be exactly how they put them together in the show. However, that may change, I haven't really decided yet. As to Lex and Nicola, I see a potential reconnection in the future, however, it may take awhile, possibly a long while. If you love long chapters, then I'm sure you'll love this one. I think it's the longest I have written so far.

Elementalsky- Thanks, I'm glad you love it. I know, I suck with my tenses. I think I'm getting a little better at though. Or at least, that's what I've been telling myself. Anyway, thank you for bearing the minor or major grammatical errors I may make. I guess that's what I get for writing most of my stuff when it's two in the morning.

Okay, now on with the story:

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The weekend after the Phelan incident was fairly uneventful considering where they lived, but Nicola knew it was only a matter of time before the next freak of the week would emerge from the shadows and turn Smallville upside-down. As she strolled down the halls to the gym during forth period on Monday, her vision was assaulted by the onslaught of several posters promoting the blood drive that took place Wednesday. She had volunteered to help out with the drive, mainly because Lana had somehow managed to lure her into it. She had been able to get out of her forth-period photography class to help with the set-up.

When she got to the gym, there were a few people in there already setting up some of the stations. She glanced around the room and after a few seconds, she found the person she was looking for. She strolled up behind the brunette and nudged her in the back.

"So, what do you want me to do, chief?" she asked, waiting for her first task.

"Nicola, glad you made it."

"Well, you did kind of bamboozle me into volunteering, Lana."

"I didn't bamboozle you. I simple reminded that in order to graduate from Smallville High you have to do thirty hours of community service."

"Yeah, yeah. So, what do you need me to do?" she asked again.

"Well, we still need more people to donate blood."

"Okay, well, I can go to the bleachers where the people love to skip class at and ask them there."

"Terrific. Here's a sign-up sheet it already has some names on it, so just try to get as many you can for the available times."

"Will do. I'll even badger people at lunch, how's that?"

"Great. See you later then?"

"Yeah. See ya."

Nicola grabbed the clipboard that had the sign-up sheet on it from Lana then quickly left the gym to go outside. She walked over to the bleachers that were outside next to the track where several students were hanging out. Some were in the gym class that period, many others were just avoiding going to their classes. Nicola spent most of the period making her way across the bleachers talking to the students. The sight of Amy Palmer and her brother caught her eye and she decided she might as well try to get the two to sign up, even if Amy might not like her because she had gone out with the man of Amy's dreams.

"Hi Amy, how are you doing?" Nicola greeted the girl.

Amy slowly looked up from the notebook she was writing in.

"Hey," greeted Amy weakly, obviously not to thrilled at the prospect of talking to Nicola. "I haven't seen you around the mansion lately."

"Yeah, well if you didn't notice, I was kind of replaced by a haughty Brit.."

Amy smiled at the comment, but Nicola couldn't tell if it was because she said she was replaced or because she called Victoria a haughty Brit.

"Actually, I did kind of notice. So, what can I do for you?"

"Well, I'm trying to find some people who were willing to donate some blood for the blood drive on Wednesday and I was wondering if you would like to sign-up."

Amy contemplated it for a minute.

"Sure," she replied. "But I need to do it between 3 and 5."

"Okay. Well, I have an opening for 3:45, how's that?"

"That's fine."

Nicola jotted Amy's name down next to the 3:45 slot, then turned to face Amy's brother who was watching them from a couple bleacher seats down, quickly trying to remember his name,

"How about you, Jeff? Willing fork over a pint of your blood? There's a cookie in it for you."

"A cookie, huh? Sure, why not?"

"Great. What time works for you?"

"Anything after 4."

"How about 4:15?"

"Perfect."

"Wonderful. Thanks guys. I'll see you later then."

As she left the pair, Amy went back to writing whatever it was she was writing about in her notebook. She went a few rows up to ask a couple more kids, when Amy's voice caught her attention.

"Troy, give it back!"

"Whoa, Amy. Just hang on. I just want to see if you wrote anything about me, that's all," she heard a male voice say.

Nicola turned to see what was going on and saw some jock she didn't recognize have a hold of Amy's notebook. Another boy walks up next to Troy and peers at the notebook too.

"Oh, Jeff, did you know your sister's writing psycho love letters to Lex Luthor?" asked Troy. "It's always the quiet ones."

"Give it back to her," Jeff demanded.

"Hey, it's not my fault you have a weirdo for a sister."

"You're a child, Troy. It's because of boys like you that girls what a man like Lex Luthor."

'_True that_,' Nicola thought, then quickly rebuked herself. '_Lex isn't much better than boys like Troy, though._'

Amy snatched her notebook back from him.

"Keep dreaming Amy. Your parents clean his bathrooms. You may live there, but Luthor's not going to slum down to the help."

_Ouch._

Jeff stood up and glared at Troy.

"Just leave her alone."

"What are you going to do about it?"

Jeff stares Troy down for a second before leaving.

"Losers," said Troy, the guy with him snickering at his comment.

Troy made his way up the bleachers and started to walk past Nicola. Nicola, displeased with the way the jock treated Amy, gave him a seething glare, which did not go unnoticed by the jock.

"You want something, sweetheart?"

"No. Just thought you should be reminded that karma's a bitch."

"I'll keep that in mind," replied Troy, giving her a self-satisfied smirk that made Nicola want to punch his lights out.

As he continued on his walk across the bleachers, Nicola decided to turn her attention back to the blood drive, so she continued on her search for volunteers.

A few hours passed, and Nicola managed to forget about the incident with Troy. The last bell of the day had rang, and Nicola made her way to the parking lot to her car so she could meet Chloe and Clark at the Beanery as they had planned at lunch. As she turned on last corner, she ran into a hard body who apparently wasn't paying attention.

"Hey! Watch where you're going!" she snapped at the person's back as they slowly continued to move away from her.

As if suddenly realizing they bumped into someone, the blonde head turned sluggishly to face her, and she finally realized it was Whitney.

"Sorry, I was distracted for a minute," mumbled Whitney, his voice sounding tired.

Nicola frowned, something was obviously bothering the quarterback.

"You alright there, Fordman? You seem kind of out of it."  
"Since when do you care about my well being, Lively?" asked Whitney obviously pulling out of his daze.

"Since I agreed to give you a chance during our ride from Metropolis."

Whitney let out a deep sigh and frowned.

"Right."  
"You want to talk about it?" asked Nicola, truly concerned about her newfound almost-friend.

"Talk about what?"

"Whatever is obviously getting you down."

"Nothing's got me down. I'm fine."

"Really, then why were you walking down the hall in a zombie-like fashion?"

"I've got a lot on my mind, that's all."

Nicola's eyes bored into his as she was trying to figure out what was really wrong with him. Even though she could have easily read his mind, literally, to figure it out, she wanted him to reveal it on his own accord.

"Okay," said Nicola finally, deciding to drop it, for now. "If you ever want to talk, about anything, I'm willing to lend an ear."

"Sure, maybe. What was it you said you had? An acute ability to listen?"

Nicola grinned at the fact he remembered what she had said.

"Yep."

"Well, I'll take it into a consideration. See you around."

"See ya."

Nicola watched as Whitney walked away from her, less zombie-like than before. After a couple of seconds, Nicola turned to continue on her trek to her car. Thoughts of concern about Whitney loomed over her.

_'And exactly why do you care about the well-being of Whitney Fordman_?' her cynical subconscious asked herself.

_Since Whitney and I came to an agreement._

Yeah, but that agreement was just that you'd give him a chance, not that you start caring about his problems.

'Oh, shut up,' she scowled at her subconscious.

"I'm not having an argument with myself," she said outloud.

Ignoring all thoughts about Whitney, she made it to her car and then started to drive to the Beanery. When she arrived to the Beanery, she found Clark and Chloe already inside walking away from the counter. As she approached them walking to the table, she heard Clark in mid-sentence.

"-around the corner, Troy was already on the floor."

_'Troy?'_ thought Nicola. _'As in the Troy who was a jackass to Amy today?_'

"Hey guys, what's up?" asked Nicola as she joined them on their walk to a free table.

"We're talking about the mysterious assault on Troy that happened today right before lunch," Chloe informed Nicola stopping to turn to face her.

"Mysterious assault?"

"You didn't hear?" Chloe asked as the three stopped for a second.

"Would I be asking if I did?"

"Touché. Anyway, Troy was attacked in the locker room today. Clark and Pete found him in a lump on the floor. Troy claims that he didn't see anyone attack him though, it just happened out of nowhere."

"Did you see anything, Clark?"

"As I was telling Chloe, when Pete and I got there, Troy was already on the floor."

"What about the voice he heard?" asked Chloe.

"Voice?" cut in Nicola.

"He said he heard someone talk to him before he was attacked."

"Oh."

"What are you thinking Chloe, that the locker room's haunted?" asked Clark.

"Not unless the meteor rocks can conjure up the ghost of dearly departed jock straps, which I seriously doubt."

The walked continued their walk to a just freed table that a waitress was clearing.

"Thank you," Clark said to the waitress as the three of them sat at the table. He turned back to Chloe. "Well, it's nice to see you still have standards."

"Yeah."

"I don't have time right now," they heard a masculine voice say from the front of the Beanery.

All three turn their heads and see that it was Whitney who was speaking to Lana.

"Look, if you don't want to help me with this blood drive, then just say so," Lana told Whitney.

"That's not it."

"That doesn't look pretty," Chloe said to Clark and Nicola who shook her head in agreement.

"Then what is it?" Lana asked, bringing the trio's attention back to the couple.

"I really don't want to talk about it right now, okay?"

"No, it's not okay! You have been avoiding me for a week! Every time I ask you what's wrong you push me away. I'm worried about you."

"Don't be. I just need some space."

"If that's what you want, fine. But if you can't even confide in me, I don't know why we're going out in the first place."

Lana walked away from Whitney and started to come toward Chloe, Clark, and Nicola.

"Oh, quick. Pretend we weren't watching," Chloe said.

As Lana approached, Nicola watched Whitney who had been watching Lana walk away from him with a hurt expression on his face. Whitney and Nicola made eye contact, but he quickly looked away before turning to walk out of the Beanery. Nicola frowned and wasn't paying attention to what the other three teens near her were talking about. She turned her attention back to her three friends as they talked about volunteering for the blood drive, but Nicola still found herself distracted. While Clark tried to get out of donating blood, Nicola quietly excused herself from the table, which earned strange looks from her friends. When she exited the Beanery, she looked around Main Street for signs of the blonde head she was looking for. Several shops down, she spotted the head in question, then started jog toward him to catch up.

"Hey, Fordman!" she yelled after him. "Fordman!"

He continued walking as if he didn't hear her.

"Yo Whitney," she yelled again, closer now. "Whit."

She finally was in arm's length of him and managed to pull him to a stop.

"Jeez, Fordman, I've been yelling your name like a crazy person for the last minute."

"I know. And I thought by ignoring you, you would go away, but alas, here you are."

"Alas? Your vocabulary's more extensive, I see."

"If you came to ridicule me, you can leave now."

"No, I didn't come for that. Look, I was just wondering if you were okay."

"Just peachy, thanks. Now if you don't mind"

Whitney turned and started to walk away from her.

"I overheard your conversation with Lana in the Beanery," she told his retreating, which caused him to stop and tense up.

"Yeah, well, so did a lot of people."

"Why have you been avoiding Lana?"

"It's none of your business."

"Whitney, I want to be your friend, but you're not really making this easy."

"Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why do you want to be my friend?"

"Because I think you need one."

"I have friends," Whitney seethed, finally turning to face her.

"Yeah, but do you have the kind of friends who you can tell whatever it is that's got you soweighed down?"

Whitney's jaw tightened and Nicola could tell she pushed him far enough.

"Look, whether you realize it or not there are people who care about you, Fordman. You should stop pushing them away before they are all completely out of your reach."

Nicola turned and started to make her way back to the Beanery. She walked in to find that Lana was no longer at the table with Chloe and Clark. She ordered a white chocolate mocha before she moved back to her seat. As she sat down, she noticed that Clark and Chloe were looking expectantly at her, causing her to raise an eyebrow.

"What?"

"What was that about?" asked Chloe.

"What are you talking about?"

"I think she's talking about the sudden disappearing act," said Clark.

"Oh. It was nothing. I just saw someone I needed to talk about."

"Right," said Chloe, not believing her, but decided to not press matter further.

"So, what did I miss?"  
"Clark here volunteered to help Lana with the blood drive."

"Did he? Oh good, one more person to endure the torture of volunteer work."

"Ah yes, you were getting people to sign-up for the blood drive at lunch, right?"

"Yep. And during forth period."

"Speaking of forth period, I heard you threatened Troy before it ended."

"And where exactly did you hear that piece of information?"

"I overhead some jocks during sixth talking about it. He said that he was with Troy at the time."

Nicola sighed, not surprised that piece of information circulated through the school.

"I didn't threaten him. I just simply reminded him that karma was a bitch."

Clark's eyes comically widened in surprise.

"Well, it appears that you could be a suspect in the assault on Troy," said Chloe.

"Yes, because I found a way to turn invisible and threw him around in the locker room. Oh, better yet, I used my telekinetic powers from a window to rough him up. Or, how about I used witchcraft and put a curse on him? Look, I was on the bleachers up until the bell rang, so I couldn't have been involved in Troy's accident."

Clark swallowed hard when Nicola said telekinetic powers and Chloe just chuckled.

"Okay, so maybe you didn't have anything to do with it. I'm curious as to why you had to remind Troy that karma is a bitch?"  
"Troy was being a jerk to Amy Palmer, so I thought I should put him in his place," shrugged Nicola.

"Well, your choice words might make you look suspicious now, considering what happened to Troy," said Clark, finally able to get a word in.

"Look, no one is going to think I did anything to Troy. I have several witnesses who will be able to place me at the bleachers at the time of the incident, so they can't charge me of anything."

"I guess you're right."

The conversation of Troy dropped as a waitress brought Nicola's mocha to the table. For about the next hour, the trio hung out talking about everything and nothing before Clark announced that he had to go home to do some chores and homework, leaving Nicola and Chloe on their own.

"You know if I had a dime for every time Clark had to leave to do chores, I'd be a very rich woman," commented Chloe as Clark walked out of the Beanery.

"So true."

"Okay, now that it's just us two, did you really not have anything to do with Troy's accident?"

"Of course not. Like I told Clark, it's highly unlikely that I could have."

"Then what, was your threat like your psychic abilities kicking in?"

"I don't have psychic abilities, Chloe."

"Well, I find it a very big coincidence that right after you tell the guy karma's a bitch, he's assaulted by an invisible assailant."

"I don't know what to tell you Chloe, but your guess about what happened is as good as mine."

Chloe stared pensively at Nicola for a moment as if she was trying to figure out if she was telling the truth. Finally, Chloe let out a sigh, realizing her friend was really telling the truth.

"Okay, I believe you. I'm just really curious to find out what really happened."

"So am I, but I assure you I'm not the answer."

There was a pause of silence before Chloe decided to a change in subject was in order.

"When do you start your night school classes?"  
"Next Monday. I have to take a two-hour Government class on Mondays and Wednesdays at Smallville High. Then on Tuesdays and Thursdays I take a two-hour senior English class at Smallville Community College. Fun stuff."

"Well, aren't you going to be busy."

"Yep. And if that's not bad enough, I have to change my schedule around when the next semester starts and drop one class to replace it with a Economics class."

"Which one are you going to drop?

"My first choice was my science class, but since I need at least three years to apply to some of the schools I'm considering, that's not really an option."

"So, it'll probably be a elective class?"

"Yep. My choices are my journalism class, photography, or theatre. Since I've really started getting into the journalism stuff and photography is out of the question, I'm pretty sure it will be theatre."

"Behold the wonders of process of elimination."

"Enough about me, how goes the Torch? Enjoying your renewed reign?"

"The Torch is great. Nothing like a full-fledged investigation to get the blood pumping, although, except for the Troy incident which only leads to dead ends, Smallville's currently lacking any stories that are actually worthy of investigation."

"Don't worry, it won't take long before something else strange pops on to the radar."

"So true."

A waitress came to their table to see if they need refills of their drinks, putting a short stint in their conversation. They turned down her offering of a refill, and as soon as she left them, Nicola moved the conversation to a new subject.

"You and Clark seem to have smoothly transitioned back on track."

"Yeah. Clark and I talked, if you can call it an actual conversation. It was more of Clark apologizing for seeming like he was taking sides and me apologizing for being a little short with him and making that comment about Lana. Basically everything was forgiven and hopefully forgotten."

"Well, I'm just glad it all worked out."

"Me too."

"As much as I'd like to stay and continue our chat, I gotta blaze. My mom asked me to pick up my sister after some school thing she had until four, which is quickly approaching. See ya."

"Later."

Nicola got up from her seat and left the Beanery to do her errand. The rest of her afternoon was uneventful until her cell phone rang later that night.

"Talk to me."

"I need a favor," a female voice announced.

"Hello to you, too, Chloe."

"Sorry for lack of formalities, but it really wasn't on the agenda of this call."

"Wow. Sounds urgent. So what's up?"  
"I need a favor," Chloe repeated.

"Yeah that much I got. What exactly does this favor entail?"

"Well, first you got to swear to hear me out before you try to turn me down."

"Oh, now that sounds promising," Nicola said sarcastically.

"Just hear me out."

"Fine. But two questions, is it dangerous and is it legal?"

"No and yes."

"Damn. Well, that's no fun."  
"Will you please just let me get on with it?"

"Sorry. Proceed."

"Anyway. I need you to go to the Luthor Manor and take pictures with your camera and possibly develop a couple if it's not too much too ask."

There was silence from Nicola's end, and after a few moments passed, Chloe thought something might have happened.

"Nicola?"

"Why?"

"Because my camera battery is currently dead, plus add to the fact I have a lovely English paper to write on top of a math assignment."

"No, not why can't you do it— although that was my next question. Why do you need pictures of the Luthor Manor?"

"Not the manor, per se. A certain room in the house. You see, Clark called me a few minutes ago to inform me that something weird happened at the manor and a room got vandalized. And you know me and weird, when he explained what happened, my interest was peaked. So, I asked him if he could see if you could come take pictures of the room so I could take a look, and he after he asked Lex, he said it was alright."

"You know that things are not exactly great between Lex and me."

"Yeah, I know it, you know it, and Lex knows it, but Clark doesn't. You know that Lex won't turn down any favors Clark asks for and Lex doesn't want Clark in on the relationship you and he had, so he won't turn Clark down on this one, otherwise it would look suspicious. Besides, I bet he would use any excuse to see you again if the flowers and the Beanery visit from last week are any indication."

"Right"

"So will you do it?"

There was a deep sigh from Nicola.

"Fine. But just so you know, you owe me big for this."  
"I know. Thank you, you're the best."

"Yeah, yeah. I'll have the pictures for you tomorrow."

"Bye."

Nicola hung up the phone and put it into her purse. She searched the room for her camera, and after she located it, she ascended the stairs to the main floor of the house. She moved her way through the house to look for her mom, and when she entered the living room found her watching some movie with Brad. Out of the corner of her eye, Juliet saw her daughter enter the living room and her attention momentarily moved to her. She eyed the camera and purse that were in Nicola's hands and raised an eyebrow at the sight of them.

"Going somewhere?"

"Yeah. Chloe got some scoopage on a breaking story and needed pictures of it. Since she's unable to take them herself because she's boggled down with homework, she asked me if I could do it for her, and I told her I could."

"Where do you need to go for the pictures?"

"A house a couple of miles outside of town. Don't worry, I know the owner."

Juliet stared pensively at Nicola for a moment.

"Okay. But be careful, and don't stay out too late. It's a school night."

Nicola rolled her eyes then replied, "Yeah, cuz I really need to get in a lot of sleep every night."

"Regardless, you're a teenager that has a curfew, got it?" Juliet retorted sternly.

"Got it. Don't worry I won't take long. Good night."

Nicola strolled out of the living room and grabbed her keys from the foyer before exiting the house. It wasn't too long after she started her car that she found herself climbing the steps that led to the front door of the Luthor Manor. She knocked loudly, and after a few moments the door opened revealing a manservant she had met the few times she had come to the place.

"Hello Miss Lively," he greeted as he let her in.

"Hello Jackson. How are you doing this evening?" she asked friendly as he led her down the hallway to where she assumed the vandalized room was located.

"Quite well, thank you. How are you?"

"I'm good, thanks. I hear it was quite an eventful night here today."

"Yes, it was indeed. A room upstairs was vandalized about an hour ago. No one heard or saw anyone come in."

"Well, no offense Jackson, but the security here isn't exactly unbreachable."

"None taken."

The rest of the walk through the house was silent. They walked up a flight of stairs and as they approached the end of the hall, Nicola noticed some police tape was attached to one of the sides of the doorframe. When the two reached the door, Jackson gave Nicola a curt nod before turning to go back the way they came. Nicola thanked his retreating back before slowly walking through the doorway and into the room. As she entered, instead of taking sight to the damaged room, her sight came across three familiar bodies in the room. Her full attention, however, was more focused on two of the three figures that were observing the wreckage. She internally retched at the sight of a brunette clinging on to the side of her former flame. To the average observer it would have appeared that Lex was completely relaxed with the brunette attached at his side, but because of Nicola's second sight, she could tell by his aura that he was completely uncomfortable.

"You're here," said a male voice, breaking her from her train of thought.

She broke from her gaze of the couple and quickly moved it to Clark, hoping that she had moved her line of sight before the two had a chance to catch her watching them. Finally out of her daze, she replied to her tall friend who had noted she made it to the manor.

"Have I ever told you how much I loved your excellent observational skills, Clark?"

"Funny," Clark replied dryly.

"Oh, you know I'm just messing with you Clarkie-boy."

She finally moved her sights to the condition of the room, and for the first time noticed the writings on the wall. "Leave", "Get Out", and "Go Now" were scrawled in big letters with fluorescent spray paint. On top of the graffiti-clad walls, the room was also completely trashed.

"So, what happened here?" she asked breaking the short silence that had emerged while she had glanced over the room.

"Chloe didn't tell you?"  
"She didn't really give details. All she said was that a room was vandalized under weird circumstances. So, what exactly happened?"

"Do you want the long version, or a trimmed version?" asked Lex, speaking for the first time.

"I'll take the long version."

"Well, we all heard a pounding noise from different parts of the house and we discovered at the same time it was coming from here. When we got to the door and find it rattling with bright light coming out its edges. I walked toward the door to open it, but as I reached for the doorknob, the rattling and bright light stopped. As I started to open the door, something blasted the door open and something bumped into me, making me lose my balance. Clark, Victoria, and I walked into this room, then turned on the lights to find the bulbs had been replaced with blacklights and the messages on the wall."

"Creepy."

"I thought so."

"From the yellow tape on the doorway, I gather you called the cops and they have come and gone?"  
"Correct."

"So, what was their assessment?"

"That it was just some punk vandals and not ghosts as our run-away imaginations might have thought.."

"Makes sense. I mean, how many ghosts can get a hold of some blacklights and fluorescent spray paint?"

"That's what the officers said," replied Clark.

"And when you told them about the rattling door, bright lights, the sudden blast of the door opening, the feeling of someone brushing past you, and the fact there was no time for the vandals to disappear as quickly as they did?"

"They said we must have been imagining things," said Lex.

"Fear was causing your perception of reality to go awry?"  
"Something like that."

"Well, I agree with the cops, definitely not poltergeist, but I wouldn't totally eliminate the possibility of it being supernatural related."

"Supernatural?" snickered Victoria.

Nicola turned to Victoria and glared at her.

"Yes, supernatural. As in attributed to a power that seems to violate or go beyond natural forces."

"I know what supernatural means."  
"Coulda fooled me," she muttered to herself.

No one acted as if they heard her muttered words, but a smirk did appear on Lex's face at her comment. There was a couple of seconds of silence before Nicola realized she might as well get this situation over with as soon as possible.

"If you don't mind, I better hurry up and get some pictures taken so I can head home."

"Go right ahead," replied Lex.

Nicola started snapping photos of the room while Lex, Clark, and Victoria continued to do their own observations. Time passed, and soon she was approaching a satisfactory number of photos taken when a female voice from behind interrupted her photography.

"I don't believe we've met," she heard the women say in a haughty British accent, causing Nicola to turn face her with a raised eyebrow. "Victoria Hardwick."

Victoria outstretched her hand for Nicola to shake, but instead of shaking Victoria's hand and introducing herself, she stared blankly at the hand to Victoria's face then back to the hand before turning back around to finish taking her pictures.

"Pretending to play nice with me won't help you score points with Lex," she informed Victoria after a moment of silence passed.

"Excuse me?" said Victoria, her tone revealing her obvious offense at the comment. Nicola smirked to herself at the fact she had managed to crawl underneath the Brit's skin.

"You heard me."

There was a second of silence before Victoria's shrill voice filled the air, earning the attention of the two males in the room.

"I do not have to withstand such slander from the likes of you."

Nicola turned back around when she heard the phrase "likes of you" and found Victoria turning to walk away from her. Nicola took a step forward, grabbed Victoria's arm, and then turned the Brit back around to face her, keeping a tight grip on her wrist.

"First of all, in order for my statement to be considered slander, it has to be false. And secondly, just because my bank account isn't as large as yours does not mean I'm less than you," she said, her voice booming, alerting Lex and Clark to be ready to intervene if necessary. "So, next time you decide to try and demean me, you better rethink it, otherwise I will be forced to trounce your scrawny Brit ass."

During Nicola's tirade, Victoria had kept trying to get away from her, but her grip on the Brit was tight. When she was finished, she noticed that Victoria was looking down at her wrist where Nicola's hand was still gripping on it tightly. Nicola took in Victoria's aura and saw a mix of anger and fear blending into the rim of her deep red glow. She smiled slightly at the fact she got to the older female. She felt a pair of hands grab onto her sides to pull her away from Victoria, and gave little resistance to the pull after letting go of Victoria's wrist. She turned to find that the hands belonged to Clark and quickly pulled herself from his grip. She turned back to eye Victoria to find Victoria rubbing at her now red wrist and Lex at her side to comfort her. Nicola tried not to look affected by the sight, but she knew it wouldn't be long before she couldn't take it anymore. Deciding her departure was long overdue, she turned to Lex.

"Well, Luthor, thanks for allowing me access to your domain," she said finally, acting as though she hadn't threatened his companion moments before. "Chloe and I really appreciate it."

"Not a problem. It's always a pleasure to be in your acquaintance, Miss Lively."

Nicola internally shivered at the smooth tone in his voice, and she chided herself for letting him still affect her. She watched Lex smirk, obviously catching on to his affect on her, and she frowned.

"Well, I must be off, it is a school night, after all. Have a good night, Mr. Luthor."

"You too."

"And I guess I'll see you tomorrow at school Clark."

"Of course."

"Good night then." 

Without another word she spun towards the door that led to the hallway and she casually strolled to the door. As soon as she knew she was out of sight, her pace quickened, and soon she found herself reaching her car again. However, before she had a chance to put her key into the door, a blur passed by her and slowed to form Clark blocking her from entering her car.

"Clark? What are you doing? What if someone saw you?"  
"No one saw me."

"You want something, Clark?"

"What was with you in there?"

"What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about how you attacked Victoria."

Nicola snorted when Clark said attacked before replying, "I didn't attack her, Clark. Although I'll admit, the thought did cross my mind."

"Why? What did she do?"  
"You should have heard her Clark. She totally tried to demean me in there, acting like just because she has money she's better than me. I was ready to rip off her head."  
"I could tell."

"Look, Clark, I just lost my temper in there, alright? Nothing more. I'm not some freak of the week you have to stop from going on a killing spree."

"II didn't think that. I just was wondering what made you snap."

"There's something about her I just don't like, okay? It's like this weird vibe I get off her, something in her aura."

__

'Yeah, and it's so not the fact that she's sleeping with Lex, is it?' her subconscious mocked her_._

'Shut up,' she scolded herself.

Clark stared at her pensively as if trying to see if she was lying, but soon the look of concentration left his face.

"To be honest with you, there's something about her I don't trust either. You didn't by chance connect with her when you had a hold of her wrist, did you?"

"No, why?"

"Well, before we heard the pounding, I was going to the study to look for a watch Lex was looking for and caught Victoria snooping on Lex's computer there."

"Interesting."

"Yeah. So, I was kind of hoping that maybe you were able to see what she was planning to do, kind of like you did with Phelan."

"Sorry, I've been getting better at controlling when I connect with people lately."

"Oh. Well, do you think you could try to connect with her?"

"That would require coming in contact with the Brit-bitch, and I have absolutely no intention of getting within a ten-mile radius of the little twit. Sorry Clark."

"That's okay, I understand," replied Clark with a slight frown on his face, obviously disappointed.

Nicola sighed, then chastised herself for letting Clark's puppy dog face get to her.

"But, I guess I can at least go into her dream tonight or tomorrow. You know, they say you can learn a lot about what's going on through a person's mind by looking into their dreams."

Clark's goofy smile decorated his face before he hugged her.

"Thanks. I really appreciate it."

"Not a problem Clark. Well, I need to get home. Need a ride?"  
"No, I drove the truck here to deliver some flowers."

"Alright well, I guess I'll see you tomorrow then."

"Yeah, see ya."

Clark sidestepped so he was no longer in her path, then Nicola unlocked her door to climb in. She started her car, and then gave Clark a wave before driving away from the mansion. Initially, she had planned to head straight home, but instead Nicola found herself headed to the place she frequently went to clear her head, Crater Lake Park. She quickly arrived to her spot at the park, but as soon as she got out of the car to crouch by the lake, she was assaulted by the fresh memories of the last time she had visited the lake. It had been almost a week before when she came her to meet Lex for their talk. Before she could stop it, a holographic replay of the events emerged around her. She saw an image of herself at her car talking to Lex, tears rolling down her face. She took a couple of deep breaths and closed her eyes, willing her powers to cease. After a couple of seconds, she opened her eyes to find the images gone. Letting out a deep sigh, she decided that this spot would be forever tainted by past events, and decided she would have to use her orbing power to find a nice, secluded spot to do her thinking from now on.

Realizing that over-thinking would occur instead of clearing her head, Nicola hopped back into her Jeep and determined that it would be best just to go home. The drive was short, but once she was home, she found comfort. She announced she was home before retreating to her room in the basement to distract herself with homework. Once in the security of her room, Nicola flopped onto her bed and closed her eyes. She glanced at her alarm clock to see it was only 9:30. It was way too early to do any dreamwalking as she had promised Clark she would do. She decided that she would take care of it way later after she herself got her own rest that would come later. As curious as she was to find out what was going on in that shallow little Brit's head, she wasn't exactly too excited about the idea of checking out her dreams.

Nicola got back from her bed and resolved that the best thing to do at that moment was keep herself busy. Her best option was to develop the pictures of the vandalized she had taken for Chloe. She slipped into her dark room then got to work on developing the film and later some of the photos. Time passed, and soon she found herself needing her usual couple hours of sleep.

When she awoke a few hours later, she felt refreshed, and no longer weighed down by the depressing feelings that had overcome her earlier that night. Unfortunately, that feeling of calmness vacated her thoughts when she remembered she still had to dreamwalk into Victoria's mind. She sat up in her bed and started to focus. Quickly she felt the buzz around her and then found herself on the dreamplane. The dream orbs whizzed around her, and Nicola realized she had no idea which orb belonged to Victoria. She decided, that she should concentrate on Victoria's vibe and aura. After a couple of seconds later, she called for Victoria's dream orb, hoping in vain that it would come to her. Shortly thereafter, an extremely high-pitched orb flew at her head, and she had to duck to dodge it.

__

Definitely Victoria's.

She called to the dream orb again and soon it came back to her, this time not trying to beam her. She outstretched her hands and hummed to the orb, causing it to spin and expand. Soon the orb was big enough to see through. Not wanting to go in, Nicola watched the dream from the outside hoping she would get an idea of what was going on by just watching. She could see that the dream took place in Lex's study and that Victoria, Lex, and Clark were all standing around the room.

__

Wait. Rewind. Clark? Why is Victoria having a dream with Clark in it?

Nicola sighed in defeat as she realized she couldn't tell a damn thing by watching things from the outside. She stepped through the filmy edge and walked into the dream. She stood at a side of the room, away from the three dream figures' line of sight. Quickly she was able to catch in on the conversation.

"Clark told me he saw you going through my computer files, Victoria. Do you mind giving me an explanation?"  
"I wasn't going through your files," insisted Victoria. "I was just using your internet browser, that's all."

"Sure you were. Well, if you weren't going through my files, then why have you been giving your father information on what company he should consider buying out?"  
"I haven't-"

"Don't lie to me, Victoria," Lex interrupted her. "I know for a fact it's true."

"Let me explain. My father-"

This time, it was a voice coming from the door that was opening that interrupted Victoria. A shiver went down through Nicola's spine as she heard a familiar voice ring into the room.

"Lexy-pie, are you ready yet?"

The voice sounded more than familiar. In fact, it sounded like a whiner version of her own voice. As the door slowly opened, a mantra floated through her head. _Please don't be me. Please don't be me._

Unfortunately, her prayers were unanswered. When the door opened, she saw herself walking through the door. Well, it was almost an exact replica of Nicolaif she dressed in very short, tight leather skirts, showed off an excessive amount of cleavage and her mid-drift, and wore tons of make-up. She internally wretched at the sight of the skankier version of herself. Her doppelganger moved across the room and attached herself to Lex's side. He wrapped his arm around her back then kissed her forehead.

"In a minute, babe. I have a little more business to take care."

"Okay."

Nicola's double gave Lex a peck on the cheek, then moved to one of the chairs in front of the fireplace. Nicola wrinkled her nose when she watched herself twirl her hair.

__

I don't twirl my hair!!! I'm insulted. Stupid Brit's got me confused with herself. I will not be defamed like this, even if it is just a dream.

Making sure Victoria's attention was with Lex and not the double, Nicola made her replica disappear in the blink of an eye. She changed her sleeping attire to a knee length khaki skirt, a light blue shirt, and a pair of sneakers before making herself pop into the same spot her other self had been. She turned to look at Lex and Victoria who were still talking. She looked around for Clark, but found him missing.

__

Probably was asked to leave.

By now, Nicola was bored with the dream. She now knew why Victoria was back with Lex, so there really was no reason for her to stay in Victoria's dreamworld.

__

Since I'm here, though. Why don't I mess with Victoria's mind?

An evil smile graced her face as the wheels started to turn in her brain. She jumped up from her seat and then walked over to Lex and Victoria.

"Lexy, I'm bored," Nicola pouted, deciding it was best to play off Victoria's dream version of her. "I can think of more productive things you can do with your time then speak with the likes of her."

Dream Lex turned to Nicola and arched an eyebrow.

"Such as?"  
"This."

Without a second thought, Nicola pounced on dream Lex and stated to kiss him. The point of it was to piss off Victoria, not to do something she wanted to do with the real Lex, and seriously, if she wanted to do that, she could have just gone to Lex's dream for that. Ignoring her conscience, she momentarily lost herself in this kiss. After a few seconds, dream Lex pulled away from her.

"What about her?" he asked, nudging his head towards Victoria.

"Oh, I can take care of that little problem for you."

Nicola moved her hand to her back and pulled out a gun from behind her. She cocked the gun, then pointed it at Victoria. The point of it was to scare Victoria, not to signify her killing the Brit. As she pulled the trigger, Nicola fully intended on stopping the bullet from hitting Victoria, but before the bullet got near Victoria, Nicola was catapulted back into the dreamplane.

__

She must have woken up. Hope you had a good scare, Victoria.

As Nicola was about to exit the dreamplane, an orb started to nudge her. She turned her attention towards the orb and reached out for it. The orb spun in her hands, and as the sound of the dream orb got louder, Nicola recognized the note coming off it.

__

Lex.

Curiosity got the better of her, and she hummed at the orb for it to expand. When it was big enough, Nicola stepped through the barrier and into the dream. After she entered the dream, she found that it took place in the place she had been hours before. Crater Lake Park. She looked around and quickly found Lex next to the lake. Upon realizing that another double of herself was in this dream, she realized what he was probably dreaming about. While her instincts told her to leave, she felt herself being pulled toward the flashback dream. Soon she was able to hear the familiar conversation she had a week before.

"So, you're willing to throw this," dream Nicola gestured between Lex and her. "All away?"

"It doesn't have to be that way," dream Lex insisted.

"Yes, yes it does."  
"Why? Why does it have to be that way?"  
"Because I'm not going to be in a relationship with a guy who's sleeping with another woman. Especially when that's the relationship that everyone will know about and mine is the one that's kept secret. I can't do it."

Nicola watched as dream Lex removed one of his hands from her dreamself's side then cupped her face with his newly freed hand. And even though it was the dream version of herself that was experiencing the touch, she could still feel the tingle of sparks that flew through her at his touch. Nicola saw dream Lex kiss dream Nicola for several seconds before her dreamself pushed him away from her.

"Stop. Don't do this."

Nicola remembered exactly what Lex said next. But the words that rolled through her head didn't come out as soon as they did in the real version. In fact, after a short pause, the next words to come out of dream Lex's mouth were entirely different.

"I love you," dream Lex said staring deep into dream Nicola's eyes.

Both Nicolas' eyes opened wide at dream Lex's admission.

There was silence before dream Nicola said, "I'm sorry, could you repeat that? I think I hallucinated for a second."

"I said, I love you.'"

Nicola watched her dreamself process the words he just said.

"Forget Victoria. Forget the good of the company. If it means losing you, it's not worth it."

Dream Nicola smiled brightly before she wrapped her arms around dream Lex and gave him a long kiss.

"I love you, too," dream Nicola said as they pulled apart.

__

Is this Lex's dream or mine? Because if I didn't know better, I'd think I fell asleep.

Not sure she could stomach the rest of the dream, Nicola made a quick exit. She opened her eyes to find herself back in her room. Lex's dream ran through her mind. If the fact wasn't obvious before, it was now; Lex still had feelings for her. Possibly even loved her.

__

This doesn't change anything. He made his decision. This doesn't change anything.

She said the mantra to herself over and over, trying to get herself to believe it. And by the time she had to get ready for school, she almost did. Pushing thoughts of her late-night excursions and all new findings aside, Nicola concentrated on getting to school on time.

The day passed slowly, but Nicola refused to use the time to over-think anything. She had left the pictures she had taken at the mansion the night before in her locker, so she hadn't remembered to give them to Chloe until after-school. So after the last bell rang, she stopped by the Torch office to see if Chloe was there. When she arrived at the Torch, she found Chloe and Clark sitting at the computers.

"I got your photos, Sull," Nicola announced as she entered the room.

"Sull?" repeated Chloe, raising an eyebrow.

"New thing I'm trying. Later I'll try Sully, then Van. What do you think?"

"I think I'd prefer Chloe, thanks."

"I'll try to remember that."

Nicola opened her bag then handed Chloe a handful of pictures. Chloe went through the photos and grabbed one with the 'Leave' message on it. Nicola and Clark followed Chloe as she went over to her wall to hang it up.

"So, what do you think?" asked Nicola.

"It doesn't leave much room for interpretation," replied Chloe.

"I was talking about the quality of the photo," she joked.

Chloe rolled her eyes at her friend's joke, but couldn't help but grin at the cheesy humor.

"It was pretty weird," said Clark, moving the subject back to the incident. "I mean, the door was shaking. When we got close, it blew open and Lex said he felt something brush past him."  
"Maybe his Scottish castle came complete with a poltergeist."

"While I wouldn't doubt that some mysterious vortex of evil consumes the house, this doesn't really fit the poltergeist forte," inputted Nicola.

"Well, the police say it's vandals. They don't know many ghosts who write in spray paint and own a black light."

"I doubt we'll figure out what happened anytime soon. There really is nothing to go on right now," said Nicola. "I call for a new subject."

"How's the blood drive?" Chloe asked Clark.

"Actually, Lana and I are getting together tonight." 

"At her place?"  
"Yeah."

Nicola could sense the tension coming off of Chloe. She glanced at Clark to see if he noticed, but as usual, he was oblivious.

"That's very romantic," replied Chloe.

"Look at Clark, making the moves," chimed Nicola.

"Just remember, Clark, once you cross that line, you can't hide behind the cloak of friendship anymore. Proceed with caution."

Chloe turned and walked out of the Torch. Nicola knew it was because she couldn't handle continuing being the supportive best friend when in actuality her heart was breaking into a million pieces. Nicola frowned at her friend's retreating back, and instead of going after her right away like her instincts were telling her, she decided to giver her a little space for awhile.

"What was that about?" asked Clark, breaking Nicola from her thoughts.

Nicola forced herself not to roll her eyes at Clark's nature to be oblivious. As much as she loved the big lug, sometimes his naiveté was unbearable.

"She was just giving you some heed, Clark. And she's right."

"Right how?"

"Once you try to go in that direction, there's no turning back. All she's telling you to do is be careful."

Clark frowned slightly as he gave what his two female friends were saying some extra thought.

"As much as I'd love to stay and chat it up with you, I have to head out. See you later, Clarkie-boy. I hope everything goes well with Miss Lang tonight."

"Bye Nicola."

She strode to the parking lot hoping Chloe was still around, but found her Ford Falcon gone. Suddenly Nicola found herself in the mood for a carmel latte, and upon the whim that Chloe probably was in the mood for coffee, she decided to head to the Beanery. As she drove up the main street she saw the red Falcon parked in front of one of the shops. After she parked her car, Nicola walked into the Beanery and looked around for Chloe. She spotted her reporter friend sitting on one of the couches in the middle of the Beanery. She ordered her drink at the counter, and after receiving it, she headed over to where Chloe sat.

"Hey," she greeted her friend.

"Hey," replied Chloe with a smile that didn't reach her eyes.

"That was awfully big of you to set your feelings aside to encourage the boy of dreams to go after another girl."

"Yeah, well I've learned how to perfect the act."

"So it seems. You know you owe me big time for the pictures, right?"  
"How big?"

"I'm talking 'the population of China and India combined' big."

"It couldn't have been that bad?"

"I was this close to throttling Miss Hardwick," she said, holding her index finger and thumb about a centimeter apart from each other to visualize how close she was talking.

"Wow, sounds intense. What happened?"

"Well, after I got to the mansion and found out what happened, I voiced my opinions on what could have happened. Victoria mocked my theories, but then later did that false niceness thing to try to score points with Lex, which I called her on. She made some comment about how she didn't have to 'take such slander from the likes of me,'" she quoted. "Then, I kind of just snapped, grabbed her wrist as she tried to walk away from me, and kinda threatened her."  
"Wait, you threatened Victoria Hardwick, daughter of a multi-millionaire and the current girlfriend of your former boytoy?"  
"Yes. In all honesty though, she deserved it, especially after I found out why she was really with Lex when I went into her dream."

Nicola's eyes widened at her slip-up. She usually had been so careful at not mention her powers, but after she told Clark about them, she supposed she had let her guard down a little too much.

"I'm sorry, did you just say you went into her dream?"

"No," said Nicola, trying to laugh it off as a ridiculous question.

"Yes, you did. What do mean you went into her dream?"

"I meant to say, after I had her in my dream."  
"No, you didn't. I know what I heard."

"Look, can we just drop it? Please? It was just a slip of the tongue, okay?"

Chloe stared her down, trying to figure out her next move, but instead of further questioning about the dream thing, she decided to find out about the first part of what she said.

"Why do you think she's with Lex?"

"Her dad sent her to screw Lex and his company over."

"Ouch. Are you going tell him?"

"He already suspects. I'm pretty sure he knows for sure."

"Then why is he with her?"

"He claims it's basically like a business venture. Using her own plans to screw her over."

"Ah. So, is that why you two broke up?"

"Yeah, basically."  
"Wow, that's some heavy stuff."

"Yeah, but I've come to deal with it," shrugged Nicola. "I better head home. I promised my sister I'd go riding with her this afternoon. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"  
"Yeah. See you."

The next day, Nicola was walking down one of the stairwells at school with Pete and Clark as Clark told the two about his night with Lana. As Clark recalled the events, Nicola and Pete found themselves chuckling at their friend's wannabe-Casanova skills.

"Have you seen the sunset from my loft?" repeated Pete. "You actually said that?"

"Yep."

"That's so cute and cheesy all at the same time," commented Nicola.

"I bet your stomach was in knots the whole time."

"Yep."

"Clark, if I were you, I'd start what I was going to say now."

"No, I think I'll play it by ear. You know, fly by the seat of my pants."

"Clark you're not the flying type. I'll make notes."

"Yeah."

"Clark, don't listen to _Cyrano_, here," Nicola assured Clark before Pete walked away from the two. Nicola continued with Clark until they reached his locker. "From what it sounds, you did fine. In fact, if Nell didn't have such impeccable timing, I'm sure you would have a lot of juicer details to tell us."

"Right," Clark replied distractedly as he looked past her to see one of Smallville's guidance counselors come up to Whitney at his locker nearby.

"I just feel bad for Whitney," Nicola said to Clark, but she realized his attention was away from her. She turned to find his gaze was cast on the exact person she was speaking of. Using her acute ability to listen (i.e. eavesdrop) she watched Whitney and the guidance counselor talk.

"Whitney, your mother called and filled me in."

"She shouldn't have."

"Well, Whitney, she's just concerned. Look, I'm not here to push. If you need anything, my office is just down the hall. Okay?"

"Okay," replied Whitney, just to get the counselor to drop the subject.

After the guidance counselor walked away from Whitney, he closed his locker and Nicola and Clark started to walk in his direction.

"Okay, pretend you weren't just eavesdropping," whispered Nicola as they neared him.

It didn't matter though, because Whitney wasn't really paying attention to his surroundings, and as he turned from his locker, he lost a grip of his bag and the binder in his arm. A couple of books fell out of the bag, along with papers and other things. Clark quickly kneeled down to pick them up, while Nicola only grabbed the one book that skidded to her feet. A pharmaceutical bag caught Nicola's eye as Clark picked it up. Before Clark had a real hold on it, Whitney tore the bag out of his hand before tossing it and the books back into his bag, then promptly walked away from Clark.

"Sorryyou're welcome," Clark said lamely into the air.

As Whitney walked away, Clark turned to watched him retreat. A look of concentration appeared on his face that caused Nicola to raise an eyebrow.

"Amlodipine?" Clark said outloud.

"What are you talking about, Clark?"

Clark turned to Nicola realizing she was still there.

"The medicine in that Smallville Rx bag Whitney was Amlodipine."

"Using you're special powers to spy on people, eh?"

Clark shrugged, then realized he had forgotten to ask her about the Victoria dream thing.

"Speaking of special powers to spy on people, did you do your dream thing on Victoria?"

"It's called dreamwalking, Clark, and yes, I did."

"And?"

"She's up to no good. She's using the information on Lex's computer to benefit her dad's company."

"Interesting."

"But not surprising. Anyway, you probably should give the heads up to your millionaire bud, minus how you verified your suspicions."

"I will."  
The bell rang signally the two aliens were late for their first period classes. As Nicola walked towards her class, she noticed the book in her hands was not her own. The realization dawned on her that Whitney walked away before she could return the book she picked up off the ground. Lucky for her though, her first class was trig with the quarterback so she didn't have to worry about going out of her way to return it. When she walked into her classroom, she found that the teacher was currently not in the room, so class hadn't started yet. She made her way to her desk that was behind Whitney and as she passed him, she placed his book on his desk.

"You know, a mumbled thanks would have been fine," she said to his back as she sat in her seat.

She heard Whitney mumble thanks and she rolled her eyes.

"I didn't mean for me."

Whitney turned to face her.

"What are you talking about?"

"When Clark helped you pick your stuff up, you could at least giving him a half-hearted thanks."

"Oh yeah, he's a regular boy scout," he replied dryly.

"All I'm saying is that you were just a tad ruder than necessary."

"Yeah, whatever."

Whitney turned back around and tried to ignore her, but she continued talking.

"You were awfully paranoid about the pharmacy bag. Afraid people would find out you're part of the Prozac nation?" she asked, trying to jar him, which it did.

"I'm not on Prozac," replied Whitney, turning back around to face her.

"Right, of course not, because if you were then you'd probably want your money back because it's obviously not working."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that you haven't exactly been the most chipper person on the block, you know?"

"No, I don't know. Why don't you further explain it to me?"

"It's just that in the last week you've been a little more down than usual. Kind of broody actually."

"I've just had a bad week, alright? Do me a favor and mind your business, okay?"

Nicola was about to argue, but before she could, their math teacher Mr. Paulson walked into the room apologizing for being late. As he started class, Nicola scribbled something down on a piece of paper and nudged Whitney's back. Whitney turned to face her and raised an eyebrow at her. She held out the note for him, which he took.

_I don't give up easily._

Whitney frowned then gave Nicola one last look before turning his attention to trigonometry. Nicola fought the urge to use her telepathic abilities to pry through Whitney's mind and see what really was going on with the blonde. Whitney had to inform her on his own accord, and if Nicola had any say in it, he would soon. As her classes flew by, Nicola still couldn't get the Whitney situation off her mind. Curiosity getting the best of her, at the end of the lunch, she went to the Torch to use the internet to look up Amlodipine. After looking it up on a search engine, Nicola found a site that gave her information on the drug. As she read that it treats high blood pressure and chest pain, a frown marred her face.

_Why would Whitney have heart medication? It's definitely not for himhe seems fine, well, except for the whole brooding act. Now I definitely have to find out what's up._

As she was about to read more, the bell rang, so she printed up the information so she could read the rest later. After she read all the information later that day, she was more determined to talk to Whitney. After school, she decided to wait by his locker so she could press him on the subject. When she made her way to his locker, she saw Clark at his own, so she decided to fill him on the situation.

"Hey Clark, what's up?" 

"Nothing much. I was about to head to the Torch to get that information on the medicine that was in Whitney's bag."

"Oh. There's no need though, I already did it," she informed him.

She opened her bag and took a folded piece of paper out then handed it to Clark. She looked past him to see Whitney closing his locker and starting to walk in the opposite direction.

"I gotta blaze though, so we'll discuss it later?"

"Yeah, sure. Thanks for this."

"Not a problem. See ya."  
Before Clark could get out a goodbye, Nicola was already rushing down the hall away from him. He glanced at the paper in his hand then tucked it into his pocket, deciding that he would look it over at the Beanery over a cup of coffee.

Meanwhile, Nicola had managed to almost catch up to Whitney as he walked out of the school and towards his truck in the parking lot. She called after him, but as he did the previous day, he ignored her shouting. As he unlocked the driver's side door, a hand caught his wrist and yanked him to turn around.

"I really don't like being ignored, Fordman."

"And I really don't like being stalked, Lively."

"I'm not stalking you. I'm concerned about you, that's all."

"Why?"

"Jeez Whitney, were you not paying attention to our conversation the other day? I'm trying to be your friend."

"Even after I've been rude to you these last two days?"

"So you admit it, you have been rude to people lately."

"Yeah, look, as much as I'd love to continue this conversation, I really have to go."

Whitney turned to get into his truck, but what Nicola said next stopped him in his tracks.

"Who's the medicine for? Really?"

He turned back around to face her.

"It's none-"

"Of my business," she finished for him. "I know. What I also know is that the medicine in the bag was heart medication."

"How"

"Clark got a peek of the name of the medicine," Nicola embellished the truth. "Amlodipine. For high blood pressure and chest pain."

Whitney was silent for a second before he let out a heavy sigh.

"There my dad's."

"Oh. Is he okay?"

"He's in Metropolis getting some tests run on him."

"Wow. I'm sorry."

Whitney looked down at his feet, not wanting to see the pity he thought would be on her face.

"If he's in Metropolis, why do you have the medication?"

"The local pharmacist is friends with my parents, so it's cheaper here than in Metropolis. Plus, I was planning on heading back to the city this afternoon, so I offered to bring it down for them."

"Oh, you're driving to Metropolis? When?"

"Like right now."

"Do you want some company?"

Her words caused him to look back up at her.

"What?"

"It's a long drive to Metropolis and back. I just thought you could use some company."

"Are you serious?"  
"As a heart attack," joked Nicola, before realizing that considering the situation, it wasn't the best thing to say. "Sorry, bad choice of words. Look, I don't have anything to do today, and six hours is a long time to be by yourself. So, what do you say?"  
Whitney contemplated the situation for a minute, then after a small sigh, gave his answer.

"Fine, but don't make me regret it."

"Terrific. I know this might be too much to ask, but I drove my car here, so can we first both drive to my house so I can drop off my car?"

"Sure."

"Great. I parked at the other end of the parking lot. You wait here, and I'll be right back."

"Alright."

Whitney climbed into his truck and started the engine as Nicola walked to her own vehicle. After she got her car, they drove to her house. When they arrived, she got out of her car and signaled Whitney to wait for her one second. She went inside to tell her mom about what was going on, and after a few minutes of discussion, Nicola's mom finally agreed to let her go to Metropolis. She hurried back outside, and as Whitney saw her descend the front stairs, he got out of the truck to open her door for her. Once she was inside, he closed the door, then went back around to his own side of the truck.

"What took so long?"  
"I had to convince my mom to let me go to Metropolis on a school night with a boy she doesn't know."

"Oh."

"But it's fine. I told her it was really important and she finally relented."

"That was cool of her."

"Yeah."

The two fell into a semi-awkward silence, which lasted several minutes. When they finally arrived on the highway that would lead them to Metropolis, Nicola decided to speak.

"Am I correct in the assumption that Lana is unaware of what's going on?"  
"I just figured she's gone through enough pain and loss in her life that she shouldn't have to go through this with me."

"That might be true, but Lana has a tendency to surprise you. Besides, she'd want to know about this and be there for you."

"Maybe. Look, can we just change the subject, please?"  
"Sure. How about we use these three hours to get to know each other better?"

"Okaybut don't make me regret agreeing to it."  
"Fine."

Nicola spent the next few hours drilling Whitney on information about him, asking any inane question she could think of. The mood had been incredibly lighter when they arrived in Metropolis, however the mood darkened as they rolled up to the entrance of the parking lot of the hospital. As they pulled up to the hospital, Nicola realized which hospital they had come to; Metropolis University Hospital. Whitney glanced over at Nicola after he parked the car and noticed she looked visibly pale.

"Are you okay? You're looking a little pale."  
"I'm fine."  
"Are you sure? Because, if you are going to continually badger me to be honest with you, I think it should go both ways."

Nicola was quiet for a few seconds as she contemplated if she should tell him why she paled at the sight of the hospital.

"Let's just say I don't have fond memories of this particular hospital."

"Care to elaborate?"

"My father died here," she said bluntly.

"I'm sorry."

"That makes two of us."

"You know, you don't have to go in if you don't want to. You could just stay in-"

"No, I'll be fine," she cut him off. "I'd like to think I've been getting better with visiting hospitals."

"Alright, if you say so."

They got out of the car and walked to the hospital's entrance together in silence. Whitney led the way to the elevators and they rode to the third floor where his father was roomed. As they walked through the hallways, Nicola concentrated on the fact that she was here to support Whitney, not to have a mental breakdown over a past event. By the time she felt calmer about her surroundings, Whitney stopped at a door and peered inside. Nicola slipped next to him then took a peek into room to see a middle aged man sitting up in his hospital bed watching something on the TV. Sensing his hesitation, Nicola placed a hand on his shoulder and upon his questioning look gave him a reassuring smile.

"I'm going to get something to drink from that vending machine we passed on the way here. Want anything?"  
"No, I'm fine."

"Okay, I'll be right back."

She left Whitney at the doorway and started to walk down the hallway to where she saw the pop machine. A few paces away, she turned back to the room Whitney's dad was in and saw him going in to it. Deciding to give the two as much privacy as possible, Nicola decided to go down to the gift shop to browse for a little while. She was in the gift shop for a while before she opted to head back to Fordman. She wandered back to the elevators and went to the floor she had previously been. After making a stop at the pop machine to get a drink for herself and one for Whitney, she slowly made her way back to Mr. Fordman's room. When she arrived back outside of the room, she stood at the doorway and watched the father and son talk. Whitney sat in a chair next to the bed, his back to her. She heard the light conversation, but wasn't really listening to it. She felt a pang of jealousy hit her heart as she watched the interaction between the two men. It was times like this when she missed her own father most. She was so caught up in her own thoughts that she didn't notice that the conversation stilled or see Mr. Fordman eye her questionably.

"Can we help you?" the gruff male voice asked breaking through her thoughts.

She blinked, then refocused her eyes on the elder Fordman. She noticed Whitney had turned and was looking at her curiously.

"Oh, sorry, I was just peeking my head in to see if Whitney wanted the root beer I bought for him, but I noticed you two talking, and I didn't want to interrupt."

"Thanks," said Whitney holding out his hand for the root beer. 

She hesitantly walked into the room then tossed the drink to Whitney.

"I would have gotten you one, Mr. Fordman, but I wasn't sure what kind of drink you'd want."

"That's alright, I'm fine. I'm sorry, how do you know my son?"

"This is Nicola Lively," Whitney introduced his father to her. "I go to school with her."

"It's nice to meet you, sir," she said, outstretching her hand for him to shake. 

"So, what brings you to Metropolis with my son?" he asked after receiving a firm handshake from her.  
"I just thought he could use the company. Didn't want Smallville's star quarterback to fall asleep at the wheel on his way back from the big city."

"How thoughtful of you."  
Nicola couldn't tell if the older Fordman was being sarcastic or not, but she decided it was best not to delve into it.

"Well, I'm going to go wait out in the hall. Nice meeting you Mr. Fordman."

"Same."

Nicola turned her heel, then quickly strode out of the room. From the chair she sat in outside of the room, she could still hear their conversation.

"What happened to you and Lana?" she heard Mr. Fordman inquire.

"Nothing. We're still dating."

"Then why did you bring this girl with you, and not Lana?"

"She's just my friend, Dad. She was around when I was about to leave for here, and she wanted to tag along. I figured I could use the company, so I let her."

"Oh. Well, next time you should bring Lana."  
"I will. Look, I better head back to Smallville. It was good seeing you. I hope you get better."

"So do I, son."

Nicola heard movement, and then soon Whitney reappeared in the hallway. By looking at his aura, she could see his mood was slightly gloomy.

"Ready to go?" he asked her, trying to act slightly cheerful.

"Sure."

They silence that fell over them as they walked down the hallway to the elevators continued all they way to the car. Nicola searched for the right words to say as the two approached Whitney's truck.

"Are you okay?" she asked lamely as he unlocked the passenger door for her, finally breaking the silence.

"Truthfully?" he asked turning to face her.

"No, I want you to lie to me. Of course I want the truth."

"Then, no, I'm not okay. It's just I've never seen my father look sofragile. I mean, he's always been like this strong, tough-guy that I've looked up to my entire life. It's just really weird. And what's scary is that we don't know if he will get better or worse or how long he has on him."

Nicola saw the tears forming in his eyes and her heart went out to him. Before she knew what she was doing, she found her arms wrapped around his neck. Whitney first stiffened under her, but after a few short seconds, he relaxed and wrapped his arms around her waist. They stood like that for a few moments before Nicola realized they had been hugging for a little longer than necessary.

"Well, I guess we better head back to Smallville," she said as she pulled away from Whitney.

"Yeah. Right."

He opened the door for her then helped her in. When he started the engine, Nicola realized that the two of them hadn't eaten yet.

"You know, now that I think about it, we haven't had anything to eat yet. How about we get something to eat here in Metropolis."

"Sounds good. Got any place in mind?"

"There's this burger joint nearby that's pretty good."

"That works. How do we get there?"  
Nicola instructed Whitney on how to get to the diner that was only a few blocks away from the hospital. It was another diner in Metropolis that Nicola had gone to a few times that had good burgers, but the deal breaker was that she knew she wouldn't run into anyone she knew there. It didn't take long for Whitney to locate the place, and after circling the blocks that surrounded the diner, he was finally able to find a parking spot. When they walked into the diner, they found it relatively busy. After waiting a while to be seated, they were ushered to a booth at one end of the diner. Service wasn't as slow as Nicola thought it would be considering how many people were eating there that night, so it wasn't too long before they had their dinners in front of them. The two ate in a comfortable silence, at ease with just being in each other's company.

Following filling their stomachs, they soon found themselves back on the road to home. There was a comfortable silence between the two. Nicola knew Whitney needed time to process all his thoughts, so she gave him that time. Nicola turned the radio on, and music from the local radio filled the car. At the speed Whitney had been driving, the three-hour drive had turned to two and a half hours. It was around 11 PM when the truck pulled into Nicola's driveway. The two sat in the truck in silence for a few moments as they both searched for the right words to say.

Finally Whitney spoke, "Thanks for coming with me today. I know I was a little apprehensive about it at first, but I'm glad you came. Plus, hospitals must be hard for you to visit, it must have been difficult to put that aside and want to be there for me."

"You learn, Fordman, that sometimes you have to go outside your comfort zone for your friends."

"So, you really consider us friends now?"

"I'd like to think so."

"Well, Lively, I'd be honored to call you my friend."  
Nicola smiled at Whitney, then impulsively threw her arms around him for a hug, which he returned.

"See you tomorrow?"

"See you tomorrow."

Nicola hopped out of the car and walked towards her front steps. When she reached them, she turned to wave at Whitney before he drove back down the driveway to the main road. She was about to climb the steps of her house, when a voice startled her.

"How long have you two been going on?" the smooth voice asked her.

She turned to the source of the voice and Lex emerged from the nearby shadow.

"Fuck, Luthor," she cursed, clutching her heart. "You really know how to skin some years off a person's life."

"My apologizes."

"How long have you been here?"

"Not long. I pulled up your driveway just moments before you and the quarterback."

"Why are you here?"

"I tried calling your cell phone, but you weren't answering."

Nicola frowned. She hadn't heard her phone ring. She dug into her purse and discovered it missing.

"Shit. Where's my cell?" she muttered to herself.

Ignoring Lex, she quickly racked in her brain where her cell phone could be, then decided to check her car. As she walked to her Jeep, Lex followed her.

"So, I decided to come by your house to talk to you," continued Lex to her back while she opened her car and searched the interior for her cell phone.

"Aha," she said after a second at the discovery of her cell on the passenger seat. She tucked the phone into her purse then turned back to Lex. "Don't you think it's a little late for a visit? Couldn't this have waited until a more appropriate hour?"  
"No, actually this really couldn't wait."

"If I wasn't answering my cell phone, what made you think I was going to talk to you? And what made you think I'd be up at this hour anyway? Plus, were you just expecting to knock on my front door at this ungodly hour?"  
"I had good faith that you would listen to me about this. Regarding your second and third question; I remembered that you said you usually stayed up pretty late and I knew you had a door that led directly to your room."

"Alright, so you had all your bases covered. Just tell me whatever it is you came her to tell me, then leave."  
"Fine. Victoria was attacked earlier tonight."

Nicola stared astonished at what Lex said, but not for the reasons one would think.

"You came all the way over here to tell me that your bimbo girlfriend was attacked?" Nicola laughed. "And I would care, why? I mean, I'm not happy she got hurt or anything, but, jeez Lex, what the hell's your malfunction?"  
"Where were you at around ten o'clock?"

"You've got to be fucking kidding me. You think I did it? Did Victoria throw herself down some stairs and blame me for it?"

"Victoria can't really explain what happened."

"Okay, now, you've definitely got to elaborate on that one."

"She was taking a bath earlier tonight, when someone or something tried to drown her."

"I don't blame them," she muttered to herself, but Lex still heard her. "And she didn't see who did this?"

"She and Clark didn't actually see the assailant."

"Clark? Of course the resident hero came to her rescue, why am I not surprised. And what do mean by 'didn't see.'"

"They think the person was invisible."  
"Invisible?" Nicola laughed again. "So, what you're telling me is that you think I found away to become invisible and attacked your new girlfriend?"  
"It's Smallville; anything's possible."

A wave of anger washed over Nicola as she really comprehended that Lex actually thought she was capable of trying to kill someone.

"I can't believe you'd think I'd do something like that!"

"It's no secret you have ill feelings for Victoria."

"But I wouldn't try to kill her. Do me a favor and get the hell away from me."

She pushed past him and climbed the steps of her house.

"You never answered my question."

"What question?" she said, not stopping her ascending of the stairs.

"How long have you and the quarterback been sneaking around?"

She stopped dead in her tracks and whipped around to glare at him.

"We haven't. Not that it's any of your business."

"It is my business. You seeing other guys is my business."

"No, Lex, it's not. Because, see, last time I checked we don't go out anymore. Actually, we technically never even went out in the first place; that would require actually going out on dates, which we didn't. And, more importantly, I'm definitely not your property. So really, nothing I do concerns you anymore."

"I still care about you."

"Oh gee, Luthor, I'm so touched," she said sarcastically. "I'm sick of this, Lex. If you really cared about me, you would leave me alone. Go home to your girlfriend."

She turned back around before he could get another word in, then she slipped into her house and closed it behind her. As soon as the door separated her from Lex, she let out a breath she didn't realize she had been holding and leaned back against the door. She took time to calm herself down, but was quickly interrupted by her mom's voice.

"Nicola, honey, is that you?"  
"Yeah, ma. Just got back."

"Oh, good. I was getting worried. You weren't answering your cell."

"I accidentally forgot it in my car."

Her mom appeared in the foyer and frowned when she took in the distraught appearance of her daughter.

"Are you okay? You don't look too good."

"I'm fine. It's just that the hospital my friend's dad was staying was Metropolis University Hospital," replied Nicola, not giving her mom the whole truth.

"Oh, I'm sorry, sweetie."

"It was fine. I just concentrated on being there for my friend."

Juliet smiled at her daughter.

"I better get on my homework," Nicola continued.

"Alright."

Nicola grabbed her bag that she a discarded in the foyer earlier that day and took it downstairs to do her homework.

The next day, she made sure not to dwell on her defunct love life or the woes of her ex. She tried to forget the accusation of attacking Victoria, but later she would discover that was easier said than done. When she got to her locker before school, Clark cornered her.

"Victoria was attacked yesterday."

"And you saved her. Yeah, I heard."

"Be honest with me. Was it you?"

She gaped at Clark, surprised he would accuse her of something like that.

"How could you even ask me that question?"

"Look, I remember when you attacking her that day the manor was vandalized. And you threatened that Troy kid before he was later attacked under almost the same circumstances. Plus, I know you have the abilities to do something like that without anyone noticing you."

"They're called coincidences Clark."

"They're awfully suspicious coincidences."

"If you really want to be sure I didn't do it, Clark, I have witnesses that can place me somewhere else during both attacks. But I would have thought that by now you would have known me well enough to know I wouldn't do something like that."

Clark was quiet for a moment before he realized what an idiot he was for suggesting one of his good friends was capable of attacking someone in cold blood.

"I'm sorry. I jumped to conclusions."

"You know what Clark, I suggest that before you confront your next suspect that you have more concrete evidence."

She slammed her locker door shut, then stormed away from Clark. She carried that anger she felt toward Clark for the rest of the day. Her other friends noticed the slight rift between the two during their sixth period class together when she ignored Clark the entire time. After school, she waited several minutes before going to the Torch's office in hopes that Clark would not be there by the time she arrived. Luckily, when she arrived at the Torch's office, she found only Chloe in the office talking on the phone at her computer. While Chloe wrapped up her conversation, Nicola picked up a small plastic snow globe off from Chloe's desk and played with it.

"Great, I really appreciate it," Nicola overheard Chloe say into the phone. "I'll be over in a half an hour. Thanks again."

She hung up the phone and looked intently at the object in her hand.

"Whatcha got there?"

"Clark retrieved this from the mansion. It's broken glass from the mirror in the bathroom Victoria was attacked in last night."

"And?"

"It has the blood who ever attacked her on it, plus this really weird green substance that explains why they weren't able to see the attacker."

"What do you mean?"

Chloe touches the glass then holds up her finger to show that the tips her fingers were invisible.

"Whoa, trippy."

Chloe regarded Nicola close, looking for any traces of prior knowledge of how the assailant turned invisible. Nicola noticed this, and raised an eyebrow.

"What?"

"Nothing. I'm just wondering if this is the first time you've seen the whole invisibility trick."

"What are you talking about?"

"It's just, first Troy the boy you threatened gets attacked by some invisible person. Then later Victoria a woman who you obviously have contempt for is nearly drowned by some unseen force. I'm just curious as to whether or not the blood sample on here might match up to yours, is all."

At Chloe's words, the anger that was bubbling inside of Nicola met its boiling point.

"I'm sick of being everyone's prime suspect! I didn't attack anyone!" Nicola yelled, all the anger that had been building up inside of her from every accusation exploding. With out warning, the snow globe in her hand burst. All of its liquidy and sparkly contents oozed out of it and onto her hands. She stared wide-eyed at the remnants of the snow globe in her hand, in astonishment of what just happened. Somehow her telekinetic powers just went out of control.

"What the hell just happened?"

Chloe's inquisitive voice broke through her thoughts.

"What?"  
"How did you do that?"

"II didn't," lied Nicola, hoping that Chloe would just think she was confused.

"Bullshit. You cannot just pull a Carrie 2 on me and expect me not to know it was you."

Her mind quickly searched for a smooth lie, but nothing came to her. Part of her wanted to tell the truth, but another part of her wasn't sure it was the best thing to do. Her common sense was telling her that it wasn't like either her or Chloe would be in danger if she told her the truth because it's not like there was a secret government searching for her specifically. She knew that even if she told Chloe that she doesn't know what happened, Chloe would still be curious and might investigate it, and if she discovered the truth on her own, the results would be far worse. She reached a resolve and made a decision.

"Alright, I'll tell you the truth, but not here."

"Okay," replied Chloe cautiously. Now she was even more curious as to what was going on.

"You were planning to meet someone in a half-hour, right?"

"Yeah. I'm having the blood on the mirror analyzed by one of my contacts, why?"  
"That means you have time for a little drive before then."

"Sure, I guess."

"Good. Did you bring your car?"  
"Yeah."  
"Then I'll leave mine in the parking lot and come back for it later."

The two walked to the parking lot to Chloe's Falcon and got into the car.

"So, where did you want to go?" asked Chloe as she started up the car.

"Crater Lake Park? But the south side, not the north side." 

"Why not the north side?"

"Let's just say that due to recent events, it's not one of my favorite spots anymore."  
"Good enough."

They drove in silence the entire ten-minute ride to the park. Both of their minds were buzzing with thoughts. Chloe was going over possible scenarios of what Nicola's big secret was while Nicola was trying to figure out the best way to tell Chloe about her secret. Upon arriving at the park, they discovered that they were the only ones there, much to Nicola's relief because she didn't know how her friend was going to react. The two sat in the parked car for a few minutes in silence, before Nicola finally turned to face Chloe and decided to start talking.

"Have you ever seen the movie _The Faculty_?" Nicola asked, deciding that maybe pop-culture references would be the easiest way to go about this.

"Yeah, Josh Hartnett was a total hottie in that movie. But I don't see what that movie has to do with anything."  
"Just bear with me. You know that part where Stokely and Casey were talking about how all those sci-fi books and movies might be based on actual stuff."  
"You mean like aliens really exist and whatnot?"

"Exactly."

"What about it?"

"Well, let's just say I know for sure that at least one sci-fi book turned television show is based on actual facts."

"What are you talking about?"  
"Ever read the _Roswell High_ books or seen the TV show?"  
"Yeah."  
"The alien species that they're based on really exist."

Chloe gaped at Nicola like she was the craziest person on earth.

"Okay, did you bump your head before this discussion or something?"

"I'm of sound mind, believe me."  
"Alright, then if you aren't crazy, exactly how do you know that the teen aliens in _Roswell_ are based on actual aliens?"  
Nicola was silent for a second and took a deep breath to build up the nerve she was trying to gain.

"Because I am one."

Chloe stared at Nicola with wide eyes for several seconds, then started laughing extremely hard.

"Right. You're a Roswell alien. Good one. You know you actually had me going for a second."

"You're right, I'm not a Roswell alien."

"Thank you."

"My spaceship landed in Savanna, Georgia."

Chloe choked on a laugh and started coughing.

"I'm sorry, did you just say your spaceship landed in Georgia?"  
"Yeah," replied Nicola sheepishly, realizing how crazy that sounded.

"Usually I'm pretty open-minded about things weird things, but you have to understand that sounds pretty crazy."

"I know."  
Chloe tried to wrap her mind around what her friend just told her.

"Okay, so what you're telling me is that you're an alien. On top of that, you're of the same alien species as the aliens in the Roswell series?"

"Yes."  
"Prove it."

"Fine. What do you want me to do?"

The blonde racked her mind on powers that the aliens in the book and show had. 

"Connect with me. Show me some of your memories," Chloe replied, deciding that would be the easiest way to prove it, and give her some insight to the alien thing.

"Alright. I need you to close your eyes and clear you mind, okay?"

"Okay"

Chloe shut her eyes and took some small breaths in order to clear her mind. She felt Nicola touch her wrist, then all of sudden a rush of images coursed through her. Chloe saw images of a spaceship soaring down to earth and later Nicola emerging from a pod. Images of Nicola discovering her abilities flew her mind and she felt all the emotions Nicola had felt when she learned about her origins. Nicola was careful not to give off any images of Clark and her discoveries of his powers, a skill she had been practicing with Clark over the weeks. Chloe didn't notice Nicola let go of her wrist, but right after Nicola let go, the connection was broken. Her eyes blinked opened and she found herself back in her car again. Chloe stared straight ahead for several minutes and didn't say a word.

Nicola watched Chloe carefully, trying to read her reaction. Chloe's aura was giving Nicola any hints since all she read was the obvious confusion her friend was feeling. She had no idea how her friend was handling the discovery, and she had no other experience to compare it with. Clark was a completely different case because he understood, with also being an alien and all. So all she could do was wait till Chloe reacted.

"Wow, that was so freaky."

Instead of the panicky tone she was expecting to hear, it was a voice of wonderment and excitement.

"Bad freaky or cool freaky?"

"Cool freaky. My best friend's an alien. Wow," she said again.

"So you're not completely freaked out?"  
"Truthfully? Only a little."  
"Okay, why aren't you freaked out? Because if I was in your shoes, I probably would be more than just a little freaked out."

"Let's just say living in Smallville for so long has made me immune to being severely freaked by anything out of the norm."

"I'll make a note of it."

"Does anyone else know about your otherworldly origins?"

"Nope, you're the first earthling I've told," Nicola said jokingly. It wasn't a total lie. Chloe was technically the first earthling she had told; Clark was an alien.

"I'm glad you've given me the privilege, even though it took you accidentally exposing yourself to me to do it."

"Well, if it's any consolation, I'm glad I told you."

A silence filled the car but was shortly ended by Chloe. 

"So, do you think you can touch the glass and see who wants to axe off the Brit?"

"Chloe, I'm an alien, not a Charmed One. I can't get premonitions from touching objects."

"Too bad, that would be useful."

"Anyway, I don't need the premonition power to tell you who wants Victoria out of the picture, well, besides me."

"Who?"

"Amy Palmer."

Chloe's eyes widened as that was the second accusation against Amy in the span of an hour. Nicola noticed her expression.

"What?"  
"Clark suspected her too."

"So he doesn't think I'm the prime suspect anymore? Nice to know."

"He accused you?"

"Yep."  
"Does he know about-"

"Me and Lex? No, but he was there when I went all psycho on Victoria and he recalled the thing with Troy."

"Ah. Well, if it really is Amy, the blood on the glass should match her blood type that was recorded during the blood drive."  
Nicola glanced at her watch and realized that they had to leave now if they wanted to meet with Chloe's contact in good time.

"We better get going if we want to meet your contact on time."

"Good idea."

Chloe started the car again and they soon were on their way to Smallville General Hospital. It wasn't long after that they found themselves pulling up into the parking lot of the hospital. Chloe grabbed the blood-covered glass from the backseat of the car then the two of them slipped out of the car and walked toward the entrance.

"Okay, now the easy part will be getting the blood analyzed to see which type it is. The hard part will be convincing the Red Cross Bank to hand over a copy of their donation records that they collected at Smallville High," Chloe informed Nicola as they stepped inside the hospital walls.

"I can take care of that," Nicola assured her.

"Great."

After a couple seconds of silence during their walk down the halls, Nicola felt compelled to pose a question to Chloe.

"How exactly did you plan on getting a hold of the records before I became involved?"

"I hadn't exactly thought that part out yet, but I'm sure I could have talked my way through it."

It wasn't too long before they were walking towards the entrance to the Red Cross offices. They stepped through the doors and as Chloe made her way to the lab to visit her friend, Nicola walked up to the reception desk. It didn't take too much concentration to start a mind warp on the unsuspecting receptionist that sat behind the counter. It required little convincing for the receptionist's mind to believe that her superior was asking for a copy of the Smallville High blood bank donation list. As soon as the copy was in her hand, Nicola backed away from the counter and casually took a seat while the reception believed she was watching her superior walk out of the office. A smug smile of satisfaction spread across her face when the woman went back to her work like nothing out of the ordinary happened.

A few minutes later, Chloe walked back into the waiting room where Nicola sat and looked pretty pleased with herself.

"Ready to go?" she asked Nicola.

"Yeah."

The two girls walked out of the Red Cross offices and moved in unison down the hospital halls.

"That went quicker than I thought it would. Did he already analyze the blood type for you?"

"They were kind of busy at the lab, but he said he would call me as soon as the results are in, which might take awhile."

"Great."

"So, did you complete your mission?"

"Yep. It wasn't hard to convince the receptionist's mind that she was watching her boss take the list from her."

"Cool."

"Now I guess all we have to do is wait."

"And the fun ensues."

"What should we do the pass the time?"

"I think I have some ideas."

Chloe and Nicola soon made it to Chloe's car and were soon back on the road. Chloe's idea to pass the time was for Nicola to explain more about her origins and later show her some of her powers. An hour later, they were in the Torch's office when Chloe's cell began to ring, but instead of it being her contact, it was Clark.

"Oh, hey Clark, what's up?" Nicola heard Chloe ask.

There was a long pause on Chloe's part as Nicola assumed Clark was filling her in on something.

"She had a what? A shrine? So, it was her? Okay. I'll talk to you later then. Bye."

After she hung up the phone, Chloe turned to find Nicola looking at her expectantly.

"That was Clark."

"Yeah, I got that much."

"He noticed that Amy had Lex's watch on her wrist. Since he was already suspicious of her, he told Lex and they went to Amy's room a little later to find that she had a shrine to Lex."

"So, they know for sure it was her?"

"Well, all signs point to Amy. Anyway, Lex asked her and her family to leave tonight."

"Wow. She really had a shrine?"

"That's what Clark said."

"What a freak. Didn't strike me as the violent type though."

Suddenly Chloe's cell phone rang and she answered it.

"HelloOh. Okay, thanks again. Bye."

"Who was that?'

"My contact. The blood type on the glass was type A. We might as well cross it against Amy's type so we have all the needed evidence if Clark or Lex needs it. Do you have the Red Cross sheet handy?"

"Yeah."

Nicola pulled the sheet out of her purse and skimmed through the names until she came across Amy's blood type.

"Crap. Amy's type O."

"Which means she wasn't the person who attacked Victoria."

"Great, now we're back to square one."

"We better go show Clark."

"I parked on the other side of the school, so, I'll meet you there okay?" Nicola said, handing the paper over to Chloe.

"Sure."

They both left the Torch's office then headed in different directions. It took Nicola a little longer to get to the Kent farm, and by the time she reached Clark's loft, she found Chloe sitting by herself on his couch.

"What happened and where's Clark?"

"I told him Amy wasn't the attacker, then showed him the paper and he noticed that Amy's brother Jeff was type A. Then he left."

"Did he say where he's going?"

"Nope, just that he'll catch up with me later."

"He must have gone to warn Lex."

"Must have."

"I have to go, too. I'll see you later, okay?"

"Yeah, sure. But fill me in on the details, okay?"

"Of course."

Instead of running out of the barn, Nicola orbed out, figuring that Chloe already knew her powers, so it wouldn't matter. Within seconds, she found herself inside the Luthor manor, in the library, which was empty. She exited the library and chose a route to go in, not even sure if Lex was in any danger anyway. As she got further down the hall, she heard faint yelling from Clark in the direction she was going in and the slightly louder yell from Lex from the direction she had come in. She turned around as the sound of something crashing filled her ears. She ran down the hall back in the direction towards the area she thought the noises came from. As she ran, she noticed a blur of yellow go past her and into one of the nearby rooms. Deciding the blur must be have been of Clark's aura, she hurried down to the room. Before peering inside, she listened in on Clark talking to Jeff.

"Jeff, what happened?"

"Chemistry, Kent. Some plants don't absorb light, they refract it. I found a weird green rose on the ground and I studied it. And then I used the oils to become what I've always beento Lex, to the people at school, everyone"

The next thing she heard was the sound of something shattering. Curious, she stuck her head in the doorway to see Clark up against the wall and Lex on the ground, but no sign of Jeff, not that she was surprised.

"That's right, I've heard Luthor talk about you like you're something special," she heard Jeff continue. "Well, I'm special too."

Suddenly Clark was pulling at some invisible force that was strangling him at his neck. Before Nicola even had a chance to intervene, Clark thrust his arm out and then something hit the beams of the platform riser that had paint on it. Paint dripped down from the top of the riser and started to form the outline of Jeff. Taking this as her cue, Nicola entered the room and started to walk towards Lex's lump form on the ground.

"You alright, Clark?" she asked as she crouched next to Lex.

"Yeah, I'm fine. What are you doing here?"

"Figured you were coming here to warn Lex about invisible boy, so I wanted to make sure everything was copasetic."

She slowly turned Lex so he was on his back, then took his hand.

"What are you doing?" she heard Clark ask from behind.

"Making sure that he doesn't have a concussion."

"By holding his hand?"

"I'm going to connect with him to check out his vitals."

"Oh."

"While I make sure Luthor's okay, why don't you call an ambulance and the police for invisible boy over there?"

"Sure."

With that, Clark jogged out of the room to find the nearest phone. Nicole quickly checked over him, and saw no signs of a concussion, abrasion, or internal bleeding. Except for the external bruises and the cut on his lip, he was fine. She lightly brushed her hand over the bruise on his cheek and it slowly faded until it wasn't as visible.

"Lex," she said softly, but loud enough that she hoped to make him stir from his unconsciousness. She shook him gently on the shoulder before calling his name again. He slowly stirred, and his eyes opened gradually. His eyes focused on the figure that hovered above him.

"Nicola?"

He started to get up, but quickly laid back down. A groan escaped from his mouth as he reached for his head with one hand.

"Woah. Take it easy there. You had a pretty hard blow to the head. It's probably best to not try and get up yet."

"Good advice."

"How you feeling? Any nausea, memory loss, or abnormal pain?"

"Other than the pounding headache, I'm fine."

"Good."

"What happened?"

"What do you remember?"

"The last thing I remember is that Jeff was attacking me, although I couldn't see him, and then I heard Clark yelling my name."

"After that, Clark came in, Jeff attacked him, but Clark managed to throw him off into the beams over there, rendering Jeff unconscious."

"And how do you fit in the picture?"

"Well, Chloe and I had blood that was on a piece of glass Clark found in your manor when Victoria was attacked analyzed and we figured out it wasn't Amy who was the attacker, but Jeff. So Clark rushed over here and I followed him."

"You we're worried about me?"

"I may not like you very much right now, but I do still care about you and wouldn't want you to get killed by the freak of the week."

"Thanks."

"You're welcome. And as soon as Clark gets back, I'm outta here."

"Where'd he go?"

"To call the police. He should be back in a moment."

"Good than that gives us some time to talk."

"Talk about what? Last time I checked, we didn't have anything more to discuss."

"That's because you did most of the talking."

"Which is best that way."

Lex was silent for a moment, and Nicola hoped that meant he wasn't going to press anything further. Unfortunately, his silence didn't last long.

"I'm sorry."

"You're sorry? Jeez, you might want start giving those out in bulk if you're going to apologize this often. What are you sorry for this time?"

"For a lot of things. But this time, I'm talking about accusing you of the attack on Victoria."

"Don't worry, you weren't the only one," she said bitterly. "Just forget about it."

"I-"

"Okay, an ambulance should be here in a little while," Clark's voice cut off Lex's sentence. Nicola turned to see Clark standing at the doorway, observing her and Lex. "I didn't interrupt anything, did I?"

"Nope, just making sure Lex wasn't damaged too much," Nicola replied getting up from the ground. "You think you're well enough to stand, Luthor?"

"I think I can manage."

She extended her hand down to Lex who took it and used it to prop himself up slowly. Once Lex was on his two feet and seemed stable, Nicola walked over to Jeff who still laid unconscious on the ground. She crouched down next to him and stared pensively at him before brushing a finger across his collarbone. The paint transferred to her finger, and a piece of his flesh was revealed.

"What are you doing?" she heard Lex ask her from behind.

"Testing a theory," she replied. "Clark, why don't you drop off Lex in the kitchen to get his face iced before going outside to wait for the ambulance while I figure out how to make Jeff visible again for the police."

"I don't know if I feel comfortable leaving you with him by yourself," Lex said.

"I agree with Lex, I'm not sure that's safe," Clark said.

"Guys, I'm a big girl, I can take care of myself. Besides, he's unconscious and shows no sign of waking up any time soon," she argued. She glanced back at them to notice they were both giving her a look of skepticism, causing her to glare at them. "Would you prefer I have a blunt object on hand in the off chance he does wake up so I can knock him out again?"

The guys throw each other a look, which she catches and scowls at them because.

"If you two continue to question my ability to take care of myself, you're going to wish that Jeff would wake up to take care of you before I have the chance," she said as she stood back up and walked over to the two males. She wrapped her arms around each other shoulders and ushered them to the door. "Now, Lex, go get your face iced and Clark, go wait for the ambulance and police? Okay? Good."

Before they could argue, she pushed them out the door and into the hallway. Clark and Lex stood in the hallway for a second, staring at each other in disbelief.

"Did we both just get over-powered by a girl three-fourths our size?" asked Lex.

"Yep."

"Should we feel undermined?"

"Probably."

"Huh. Should we go back in and reargue our position?"

"I definitely wouldn't recommend that."

"You're probably right."

Without another word, both males started to walk down the hall to do the tasks they were commanded to do. Meanwhile, Nicola found herself crouched next to Jeff again. She decided the best course of action would to get rid of any trace of the fact that Jeff had been invisible earlier that night or the oils covered on him that made him invisible. She glanced around the room for a towel, but didn't see one, so, she left the room in search for the nearest bathroom. It didn't take long before she found one and located a couple of towels to clean him up with. She went back into the room, half-expecting Jeff to suddenly be up and at them, but found him in the same spot she left him. By the time Lex returned with a pack of ice on his face, Jeff had completely returned to the land of the visible and any evidence of invisibility was gone. One thing that Nicola hadn't factored was that in order to be completely invisible, Jeff had to be completely naked. So, when Lex re-entered the room, he found Jeff clad in only a towel. Upon Lex's raised eyebrow, Nicola just shrugged and decided it was best not to provide an explanation. They sat in silence for a few moments before Nicola got uncomfortable and decided to break the ice.

"I told you she had the hots for you."

"What? Who?" asked Lex, surprised by the sudden non-hostile words from Nicola.

"Amy. I told you she had a crush on you. All-be-it, I didn't think she was obsessed enough to make a shrine, but for the most part my instincts were right."

Before Lex had a chance to respond, Clark returned with paramedics and a couple of officers. Nicola was about to slip out, but the police wanted her to give a short statement before she left the scene. After quickly talking to the police, telling them that she didn't see anything that went on that night and arrived after both Lex and Jeff were immobilized, she walked over to where Lex was being checked out by a medic with Clark nearby.

"Look, I've gotta jet. I'm glad you're still in one piece."

"Thanks."

"And I guess I'll see you later Clark."

"Yeah."

Without another word, Nicola left the room and rushed down the hall. As soon as she was sure she was out of sight, she orbed back to Clark's barn. Upon arrival, she found that Chloe was no longer in the spot she left her, not that she was surprised. She hustled down the stairs then made her way to her Jeep outside. Deciding that filling Chloe in on the details what happened was the best thing to do right now, she headed for Chloe's house to see if she was home. As she pulled up in front of Chloe's house, she saw Chloe's Ford Falcon parked in the driveway next to a Volvo. Nicola parked her car then headed for the front door. She knocked on the door, and shortly the door swung opened to reveal a middle-aged man.

"Hello Mr. Sullivan. Is Chloe home?"

"Yes she is. Come on in, Nicola."

He gestured for her to enter, which she did.

"So how are you tonight, Mr. Sullivan?"

"Just fine. How about you?"

"I'm good."

"That's good. Well, Chloe's up in her room."

"Thanks."

Nicola left the foyer and walked upstairs to Chloe's bedroom door. She rapped on the closed door until she heard Chloe call for her to enter. Nicola opened the door and as she walked in, Chloe turned from her desk to see her friend walk in.

"Oh, what's up? Is Lex in one piece?"

"Uh huh. Sorry for bailing on you, but I had to help if I could."

"I understand. So what happened?"

"Jeff did his invisible thing and attacked Lex. Clark did his hero thing and saved Lex. You know, same old, same old. I left before any arrests were made though."

"Nice. So, did Jeff reveal how he became invisible?"

"What makes you assume he revealed his secret?"

"The villain always reveals how they got their powers before their demise," shrugged Chloe.

"He found some strange green roses somewhere and used the oils to refract the light so he appears invisible."

"Which would explain the green goop on the mirror and why it smelled like roses."

"Yep. I wiped it off of him before the cops got there because I figured if someone was to find out that there was a formula to become invisible on him, they might try to replicate it."

"Good thinking."

"So, what did you do during my short time playing sidekick?" Nicola asked, changing the subject.

"I did some math that's do tomorrow. Exciting, huh?"

"Speaking of homework, I have some to attend to. Thank God tomorrow's Friday."

"Here, here."

"Well, I'll see you tomorrow then."

"Yeah, see ya."

Nicola exited Chloe's room and made her way back to her car so she could head home. As she made her way to her house, she passed the Kent farm and she felt the sudden urge to check up on Clark. After going up the drive, she parked her car then slipped out of it before making her way to the loft in the barn. When she reached the top step, she found Clark sitting on a chair near his loft window in the darkness.

"Hey there, Clark. Brooding in the dark, I see. What's got you down?"

"Nothing."

"Nothing, huh?"

Nicola walked up to the telescope and peered into it to find it was focused on Lana Lang's front porch. The image of Whitney and Lana hugging filled her eyes.

"Fordman finally told Lana what was going on, eh?" she asked, turning away from the telescope and looking at Clark.

"Yeah," replied Clark disheartened.

"From your mood, I'm guessing sunset-watching with Lana was a bust?"

"Yup."

"Probably because you found out why Whitney had the heart medication and being the noble guy you are, you couldn't make a move on the guy's girlfriend."

"Uh huh."

"Any chance I'm going to get a reply longer than one word from you tonight?"

"Nope."

"Too bad. Well, I guess I'll just have to do all the talking then. Look, I know you were really looking forward to taking a chance with Lana tonight and I know it must have been hard to turn her back to Whitney, but you did the right thing."

"Then why do I feel like I made the wrong choice?"

"Wow, a whole sentence. Don't I feel special?"

Clark gave her a look, and her grin faded.

"The reason you feel like you made choice is that while your mind and morals are telling you made the right choice, your heart is muddying logic and telling you otherwise. I know your heart is telling you that you should have gone for it, but you know it wouldn't have been the right thing to do."

"I know."

"Don't worry Clark, tonight might not have been the night for you and Lana, but if it's meant to happen, it'll happen. And if it doesn't, there are a lot of other girls in Smallville who would die to have Lana's spot in your heart."

"Really? Like who?"

"I'd tell you, but then I'd have to kill you."

Nicola grinned at her friend, then gave him a small hug.

"Well, I've gotta head home. I'll see you at school, okay?"

"Okay."

"And chipper up, Clark. There're worse situations you could be in than in a played-out love triangle."

"Jeez, thanks for the pep-talk, coach," Clark said sarcastically.

"Not a problem, slugger."

She gave him a slap on the shoulder, and then bounded for the stairs. As she made her way home in her Jeep, she found herself looking forward to retreating to things that resembled normalcy, like homework. However, she knew, living in Smallville, that sense of normalcy wouldn't last long.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
TBC- Although expect later rather than sooner.

So, what did you guys think? After writing this, I'm not sure if letting Chloe in on the "Nicola is an alien" thing was the right thing to do or even made sense, but my muse was telling me to go in that direction for some reason. So, was this better than my last chapter? Worse? Too long? Tell me, tell me, tell me. Feedback is always helpful. I'm not sure if I should make Hug the next chapter or skip it. I'm kind of going back and forth from the two options. What do you think? Tell me, please. Thank you.


	13. Handshake of Death by Embarassment

**Author's Notes:** What's this? Do my eyes deceive me? Has Nicole actually updated the story that I thought was long dead? Yes, loyal readers, it's true; after months upon months of road blockage, I have finally managed to get out a new chapter. I apologize for the slowness of it all, but my muse has like died on me or something because it's been pretty damn hard for me find the inspiration to write anything. However, I refused to give on this baby. If it is any consolation, it is the longest chapter I have ever written, for anything. It totaled 61 pages in my word processor. 61 pages, people.

I tried to downplay the angst and Nicola/Lex relationship in this chapter, but apparently if there is one thing my muse does inspire, it is this, so I apologize beforehand. To be honest, I'm starting to hate the Nicola/Lex relationship and wish I either a) hadn't done it so soon or b) hadn't done it at all. Oh well, what's done is done. Anyway, despite the angst and the Nicola/Lex thing, I am happy with the overall result of this chapter though, and I hope you will be too.

I would like to thank those readers who have stuck with my story, you all rock. To Mixer, chocolate-oreo, katieoliver, heavenstar3, mello80, and Sarah (aka gannonsgrl), thank you for reviewing the last chapter.

ETA- mellow80, thanks for the review for this chapter, and I know the money thing was kind of unrealistic, something I thought about when I was writing it, so I decided to alter what happened. So, thanks for the suggestion.

Lastly, before the story begins, let me apologize once more for the tardiness of my updating and I hope this chapter (which is "Hug" episode based) isn't too long for y'all or suck too much.

"Explain to me again why you need a horse?" Nicola asked Chloe as they walked into the stables on Nicola's family's ranch.

"I told you, I'm going horseback riding with Lana and Clark through the woods," Chloe explained to Nicola for the third time.

"And you want to subject yourself to that torture, why?"

"I just thought a little ride through nature would be refreshing."

"Sure, and you brought your camera to document the whole experience, right?"

Chloe frowned, knowing she had been cornered on her real reason for wanting to go riding through the woods.

"Okay, so I might have heard that something strange happened in the woods there and I wanted to investigate it," Chloe admitted to her friend.

"I figured it was something like that. So, have you ever ridden a horse before?"

"Uh, no."

"Then you're definitely in for a treat."

"Can't wait."

They stopped in front of one of the stalls and Nicola opened the door. Chloe walked in after Nicola to find that a dark brown horse stood inside.

"This is Stella," Nicola informed Chloe as she petted the horse on its mane. "She's really friendly and pretty compliant. You shouldn't have much trouble with her."

"Great."

Nicola quickly saddled Stella up and made sure everything was secure. She gathered the reigns then started to lead Stella out of the stalls and into the hallway. She instructed Chloe on how to properly get onto the horse, and once Chloe was safely on Stella, she handed the reigns over to her. Soon after she went over the basics with how to get Stella to go, stop, speed up, slow down, etc., Lana and Clark rode into Nicola's stables on their own horses.

"Hey guys, right on time," said Chloe.

"Hi Chloe, Nicola," greeted Lana.

"Ladies," said Clark.

"Hi there," replied Nicola. "Well, have fun on your ride."

"You sure you don't want to come?" asked Chloe.

"Nah, I probably should do my homework for night school."

"Oh come on, a couple hours more of homework neglect won't kill you," insisted Lana.

"Do my ears deceive me? Is Miss Studious encouraging negligence?"

"Oh come on, I'm not that bad."

"I don't know Lana, you are pretty serious about studying," agreed Clark.

"Just because I want to get good grades, does not mean I don't know when to let loose, guys."  
"Of course you do," placated Chloe.

"So, what do you say, Nicola? Put off school work for a couple hours to hang out with your friends?" asked Lana.

"Well, if I get the Lana Lang stamp of approval to slack off, then I guess I have no choice," Nicola said, slight sarcasm oozing in her voice. However, while Chloe caught the derision in her tone, the denotation of sarcasm went over both of their brunette small-town friends' heads, and they took it as harmless teasing. "Let me just go mount my horse."

She disappeared into one of the stalls and after a few minutes, came back out with a tan horse in tow.

"Alright, kiddies. Let's go."

A half an hour later, the four teens found themselves trotting down a trail in the middle of one of Smallville's many woods. Nicola rode back with Chloe as the blonde struggled to make Stella stay on the path while Lana and Clark took the lead in front.

"Okay, here we go. Whoa!" Chloe said to Stella. "I thought learning how to drive my dad's Volvo was difficult. But at least the car came with windshield wipers."

"Chloe, you're doing fine for your first time," Clark assured her, turning back to give her a grin.

"Yeah, Chlo, you're doing better than most first timers I've seen come to the ranch," added Nicola. "And don't worry. While Stella might not always go in the direction you want her to, she never bucks."

"For some reason, that doesn't reassure me," Chloe replied wryly.

Stella weaved back and forth, reluctant to go on a straight, forward path. Chloe tried to steer her in the right direction, but Stella was resisting. As Stella finally started to trek forward, Chloe suddenly sensed something was amiss and started to look around her.

"Where's my- Oh, I dropped my camera."

"Chloe, what did you bring that thing for anyway?" asked Clark.

"I'm not out here doing this butt-bashing thing for fun. These woods are like the Bermuda-triangle of Smallville," she informed them, causing them to look at her skeptically. "No, I'm serious, you guys. People have come in here, and when they leave they can't remember a thing. There've been dozens of incidences in the past ten years."

"I'll get your camera for you," volunteered Lana.

"Thank you," replied Chloe right before Lana turned her horse and headed down the path they came from.

"So, what's up with these woods?" Nicola asked, curious as to what Chloe was talking about.

"The stories in these woods go back to the civil war," Clark explained.

"No, Clark, what I'm talking happened about a week ago. Surveyors from Rickman Industries came screaming out of the woods and they can't even remember what happened."

"I'm sure you have a theory about that," said Clark.

"Kyle Tippet."

"Who?" asked Nicola, the name unfamiliar to her.

"Are you talking about the guy who sells weird sculptures in town?"

"Yeah. Don't you think it's a little odd he lives all alone way out here in the woods?"

"Thoreau did."

"Yeah Clark, so did the Unabomber."

Nicola snickered at Chloe's retort, but the smirk on her face faded when the sound of a distant shriek filled her ears.

"Lana," Clark said, concern for Lana radiating off him. He quickly dismounted from his horse and handed the reigns to Chloe. "Stay with the horses."

"Okay," replied Chloe before her horse started to trot forward a little. "Oh. Whoa, whoa, whoa. Easy."

As Chloe tried to maintain the horses, Nicola watched Clark intently as he started to hustle down the path. Clark glanced back at the two girls to make sure Chloe wasn't watching, and at Nicola's expectant look, he turned around and sped off. Nicola moved her gaze away from the moving blur that was Clark, and turned her attention to Chloe who was struggling to keep the horses calm. Chloe glanced back to where Clark was seconds before, and her brows furrowed in slight confusion as she surveyed the area.

"Okay, where did he go?"

"Forget that, the better question is, should we be worried that he recognized the scream as Lana's so quickly?" Nicola joked.

"That also is a valid question."

A slight silence filled the air for a moment as the digested the situation.

"You know, I think I should be a little insulted right now," joked Nicola.

"What are you talking about?"

"Well, when I asked you why you have the camera with you, you get all secretive, but when Farmboy asks why you brought the camera, you instantly spilled everything."

"That's because I knew you'd get on my case about the fact that I was torturing myself by tagging along with the never-ending soap opera that is Clark and Lana just for the sake of a hot story."

"True, but I'm still slightly miffed."

"Duly noted."

"Thank you."

There was another pause in their conversation and both were getting bored waiting for Clark to come back.

"I wonder what happened to Lana," Chloe voiced what both of them were thinking.

"Wanna go find out?"  
"You read my mind."

"Here, hand over the reigns to Clark's horse. If watching you on Stella was any indication, I doubt you can handle having another horse on your hands."

"Okay, that is so not my fault. You probably gave me this horse fully knowing she wouldn't trot forward."

"Maybe," grinned Nicola evilly.

"You suck."

"I know. Come on, let's go."

A few minutes later, the two came across Lana and Clark who were coming out of a part of woods just off the trail. Lana was leaning on Clark slightly for support, still rattled from the fall.

"Are you okay, Lana?" Nicola asked her brunette friend.

"Yeah."

"What happened?" asked Chloe.

"I'm not exactly sure. The last thing I really remember is that I saw Chloe's camera in the woods, so I started to move towards it when suddenly my horse bucked. The next thing I know is I'm on the ground and this creepy guy is holding onto my shoulders."

"Creepy guy?" questioned Nicola.

"Kyle Tippet," replied Clark. "He ran off as soon as I approached them."

"Really. That's...suspicious."

"I know. But, luckily this was recording from the ground," started Clark, holding up Chloe's formally missing camera. "So maybe we'll get the whole story."

"Wait? How is that possible?" asked Chloe, brows furrowed in confusion. "I wasn't recording anything when I dropped it."

"Maybe it hit the record button when it dropped to the ground?" suggested Nicola.

"Maybe."

Nicola noticed Lana was still a little shaky from the fall and decided that it would be best to get her to the hospital as soon a possible.

"Clark, why don't you double up with Lana on your horse and take her back to your farm so you can get her to the hospital?"  
"I don't need to double up with Clark and I don't think I need to go to the hospital. I'm fine, really," insisted Lana.

"You were thrown off your horse, which means you might have a concussion. We aren't going to take any chances, okay?"

"She's right, Lana," agreed Clark. "Better safe than sorry."

"Okay, I guess you're right."

"Of course I am," joked Nicola.

"What about my horse?"

"Chloe and I will take her back to your stables."

"We will?" said Chloe, and then noticed the looks she received from Clark and Nicola. "We will."

Clark helped Lana saddle up on his horse than got on after she was settled. Clark started to trot off before Chloe's voice stopped him.

"My camera, Clark?"

Clark turned his horse to face Chloe again.

"Is it okay if I hold onto it so I can take a look at the tape later?"

Chloe hesitated for a moment but then knew she could never to say no to Clark.

"Sure. But it better get back to me in one piece."

"No problem, Chlo. Thanks," he replied, giving her his trademark boyish grin.

Chloe ignored the small butterflies in her stomach she got every time that grin was directed at her and grinned back before she replied, "Any time."

Clark turned around once again and headed toward the path. As soon as the two brunettes were out of earshot, Chloe turned to Nicola to glare at her.

"Thank you so much for volunteering me to help be nursemaid to the Pink Princess's horse."

"Hey, it was either that or play nursemaid to the Pink Princess herself. Or, horror of horrors, watch Clark play the role."

"Well, when you put it that way, this option doesn't seem as bad."

"That's what I thought. Now come on, let's get Lana's horse and take her back to the stables as soon as possible. I've had enough of this butt-bashing for one day."

"No arguments here."

Nicola trotted over to Lana's horse that stood nearby, grabbed a hold of her reigns, and then started to pull it along towards the main trail. After dropping off Lana's horse at her stables, Nicola and Chloe rode back to Nicola's place to drop off their own horses.

"So, should we go to the hospital to check on the Pink Princess as you so affectionately nicknamed her?" Nicola asked Chloe as they safely tucked the two horses away in their stalls. "Although, now that I think about, she was wearing yellow today."

"I really don't think that's necessary. We could just call and ask about her status."

"Yeah, but they only give that information to intermediate family."

"I know," Chloe said with a gleam in her eye.

"Chloe, no," Nicola warned her, knowing exactly what her friend was thinking. "For all we know Nell could be in the hospital already."

"I highly doubt that. Not that much time has passed and I doubt Clark remembered to call her."

Nicola let out a deep sigh before taking her cell out of her purse. She dialed 411 to get the number for the hospital and as the phone rang, she concentrated on altering her vocal chords. It took a short time before the receptionist answered the phone.

"Hello. I'm calling regarding my niece Lana Lang, I believe she was brought in by a Clark Kent." Chloe heard Nicola say into the phone, but instead of Nicola's voice it was a dead-ringer for Nell Potter. "Has she been examined yet?"

"Sorry, but I can only disclose information to the parents of a patient that is a minor."

"I'm her legal guardian," Nicola informed the receptionist in Nell's haughtiest tone.

"Hold on one moment please." There was a pause from the receptionist side of the phone as she went through the nearby files. "Ah yes, Lana Lang. Thrown from a horse. She has a mild concussion, but other than that no serious injury. She needs her legal guardian to sign her out. You should have already been called to pick her up."

"Oh, I did, but my voice mail picked it up," lied Nicola. "Anyway, thank you. I'll be there in a jiffy to pick up my Lana."

Nicola hung up the phone and turned to Chloe who was staring at her with a raised eyebrow.

"What?"

"A jiffy?" snickered Chloe. "My Lana?"

"I don't know how the hell Nell Potter would talk; I've only encountered her twice," snipped Nicola, her voice still sounding like Nell's.

"Okay, could you please change your voice back to normal? You're creeping me out."

Nicola glared at Chloe, then a mischievous twinkle passed through her eyes. Before Chloe had a chance to bat an eye, Nicola suddenly morphed into the person whose voice she was portraying. Chloe stared wide-eyed at her friend who now embodied the perfect clone of Nell Potter. This was the first time Nicola had used this power in front of her and it was a million times more amazing than she imagined.

"Is this better?" drawled the pseudo Nell.

"God no, it's like a billion times worse. One Nell Potter in the world is bad enough."

Before Chloe could quip another word, Nicola was once again in her own form.

"There. Happy now?" asked Nicola. Along with her image, her voice was back to normal also.

"Extremely. And next time could you give me a little warning before you morph into people I have no desire to be in company of?"

"Will do."

"Thank you. So, how's Lana?"

"Mild concussion, but other than that, she's fine."

"That's good."

"Yeah."

"Well, now that we know she's okay, what do you say to a cup of coffee?"

"I'd say that's a brilliant idea. I was just craving an extra caramel, caramel mocha."

"Great. We can take my car."

"Sounds like a plan."

They strode out of the stables and towards the house where Chloe had parked her Falcon. When they got to the downtown area of Smallville, the only parking they could find was a few blocks away from their destination, so walking would be required for their excursion. As they walked down the street they noticed there was some kind of opening or something in one of the buildings across from the Beanery. Their curiosity peeked and they decided to check it out.

"Rickman Industries Welcome Center," Nicola read aloud as they neared the building. "I didn't know the Pesticide King was coming to Smallville."

"Oh, yeah, I forgot about that. Rickman Industries is trying to open a pesticide plant here in Smallville."

"Great, just what we need, a polluted water supply."

"I was thinking the exact same thing," a masculine voice said behind them, causing Nicola to tense up.

She didn't have to turn around to know whom the voice belonged to, but she did anyway, forcing herself to give him a tight smile.

"Hello Miss Lively, Miss Sullivan."

"Mr. Luthor," greeted Chloe.

"Lex," Nicola returned with a slight nod and an air of nonchalance.

"So, what brings you two ladies to Rickman Industries' big hurrah?"

"Morbid curiosity," replied Nicola. "How about you?"

"I have some business with Rickman to attend to."

"Business…of course. You better watch out, you know what they say, 'All work and no play makes Lex a dull, dull boy.'"  
"I'll try to remember that."

"Good. Now if you'll excuse us, we have two caffeine addictions to feed. See around Lex."

"I'll hold you to that."

Nicola gave Lex a weak smile before she and Chloe continued to their original destination. As the two crossed the street to walk towards the Beanery, Nicola could feel Lex's gaze on her, but she ignored it.

"Wow, an actual civil conversation," Chloe said once the two were further out of earshot. "If I didn't know any better, I would say you and Lex were on better terms."

"Ah, but the beauty is you do," replied Nicola. "To be honest, to retain that level of calmness took a lot a work. After the whole false allegation thing last week, it's been like my brain refuses to function correctly whenever I'm around him and I cannot act like a rational, normal human being."

"Because you were so rational and normal before," Chloe teased her friend.

"Gee, thanks. Always one with the compliments, aren't ya, Chlo?"

"You know it."

"Anyway, I've decided that if I'm going to live in a town called Smallville, then I've got to learn to deal with the possibility of forced interaction, especially since we run in shared circles."

"How mature of you."

"I know, shocking, huh?"

They paused their conversation to order and after they got their drinks they headed for a table near the middle of the cafe.

"Well, if it's any consolation, at least you'll be leaving soon," Chloe said as they took their seats across from each other.

"Five months is not soon."

"Hey, I still have three years on top of those five months, so you better quit your complaining."

"Fine."

The topic of choice moved towards the absurdities that filled the latest gossip that had been filtering through Smallville. For the next hour, the two chatted away at their table in the Beanery, both deciding to neglect their homework for a little longer. The sun had already set- not that it was saying much since the sun set around five-thirty at this time of winter- when the ringing of Nicola's cell phone abruptly interrupted their idle chat. She pulled the cell out of her purse and glanced at the caller ID to find the number was an unfamiliar one. Her brows knitted together as she tried to fathom any recognition, but none came. After a moment's hesitation, Nicola decided to answer her cell.

"Nicola?" said the familiar male voice. "It's Clark."

"Clark?" repeated Nicola, resisting the urge to roll her eyes as she noticed Chloe perk with interest when she heard the name their tall friend. "What's up? Where are you calling from?"

"I'm at a pay phone down the road from Kyle Tippet's house."

Nicola's eyes widened at the name mentioned and she sat up straighter in the chair she sat on.

"Clark what are you up to? You aren't going to confront him are you?"  
"I just want to talk to him."

"Talk to him? Why?"

"Nell wants me to tell the police that I saw Kyle spook Lana's horse and attack her, but I don't think he wasn't trying to hurt Lana."

"You don't? And you construed this theory, how?"

"From Chloe's videotape. It didn't look like he was trying to attack her."

"Look Clark, whether or not he did it, I don't think it's very smart to confront him on your own."

"Are you forgetting who you're talking to? It's not like he can hurt me."

"That's not the point, Clark, and you know it."

"I'll be fine, don't worry about it."

"Then why did you call me?"

"Well, I just wanted to see if you wanted to meet me at the Beanery afterwards so we can talk about what I found out."

"Okay, sure. That's where I am now, actually."

"Great. I'll be there as soon as I can."

"All right. Are you sure you don't want me to meet you out there?"

"I'll be fine."

"Okay. See you in a few then."

"Bye."

As she hung up the phone, Nicola stared at it for a moment, shaking her head in disbelief. With her peripheral vision, she noticed Chloe was practically gawking her, waiting to be filled in. One corner of Nicola's mouth curled up in a smirk, amused by Chloe's predictable inquisitive behavior.

"That was Clark," Nicola explained as she slipped her phone back into her purse.

"That much I gathered," Chloe replied sarcastically.

"He seems to think that Kyle didn't attack Lana today, so he's decided to have a nice chat with him."

"He's what?"

"I know, I know. Do you think Clark honestly believes that talking to Kyle will actually be productive?"

"Sadly, yes, I think he does."

"Well, I guess we'll just wait and see then. He said he wanted to meet me here, so we can only wait."

"Fun."

As they waited for Clark to meet them, the two girls went back to their previous chatting. Several minutes passed, and Nicola, who had been sporadically checking the entrance for Clark's arrival, noticed a different brunette she knew walk into the Beanery with her quarterback boyfriend in tow. From where she sat, Lana looked perfectly healthy. No limping or any other signs of injury could be observed. Lana suddenly glanced in her direction during her appraisal, so Nicola gave her a smile and a wave. Lana, taking the wave as an invitation to come to their table, said something to Whitney before heading in their direction.

"Don't look now, but her royal pinkness is headed this way," Nicola joked to Chloe in a low voice.

Chloe smirked before she turned to see Lana approaching them and also took notice of Whitney behind her waiting in line at the front counter.

"And apparently," Chloe replied as she turned back around to face Nicola. "She brought her loyal steed."

Nicola chuckle at Chloe's comment turned into a cough as Lana finally came within earshot.

"Hey guys," greeted Lana when she made it to their table. "What's going on?"

"Nothing really. Just hanging out," replied Nicola. The friendly smile on her face faded away to a serious expression. "How are you doing? Nothing broken, I hope?"

"Nope, just couple of scrapes and bruises and a mild concussion."

"That's good. You want to join us?"

"Actually, I'm here with Whitney."

"He can sit with us, too. We don't bite."

"Well, when you put it that way," replied Lana, smiling slightly.

Nicola got up and sat next to Chloe on the other side of the table so Lana and Whitney could sit next to each other. As soon as Nicola moved to the other side of the table Lana took her former seat.

Before any of the three girls could speak again, a cell phone once again interrupted conversation. However, this time it was Chloe's. Just as Chloe had done to her earlier, Nicola listened to the call intently.

"Hello? Oh, hey Dad...Oh my god, I'm so sorry, I completely forgot. Okay, I'll be right home. Bye...Love you, too." Chloe hung up the cell then, then after tossing the cell into her purse, she stood up and turned to her friends. "Sorry guys but I have to go. I forgot my Dad was cooking tonight."

"Not a problem," replied Nicola. "I can just bum a ride from Clark later."

"You sure?"

"Yeah, it's fine."

"Great. Promise to fill me in later?"

"Will do."

"Fill in?" asked Lana, unsure what they were talking about.

"I'll explain later," Nicola assured Lana.

"Bye guys."

"Bye Chloe."

"See ya."

Chloe wasn't even halfway to the Beanery's entrance doors when Lana turned and looked expectantly at Nicola, waiting for her to explain what Chloe had been talking about. Nicola barely resisted rolling her eyes. Apparently Chloe's inquisitive nature was contagious. _Lana should really lay off the Torch work with Chloe,_ Nicole thought to herself._ I really don't need a faux-Chlo on my hands._

"So, Clark told me that Nell wants to press charges against Kyle Tippet," Nicola said to Lana, trying to elude the topic Lana want to talk about.

"She's been really adamant about it," replied Lana. "Anyway, nice attempt of topic change, but it's not going to work."

"I have absolutely no idea what you're alluding."

"Sure you don't. Come on, what was Chloe talking about earlier?"

"Fine, I'll tell you," sighed Nicola exaggeratedly. She paused for dramatic effect, but before she got a chance to start explaining, the person who she had been waiting for earlier and was about to talk about sat next to her, without even acknowledging her presence.

"How you feeling?" Clark asked Lana.

"Better, thanks. Nell said you were going to talk to the police."

"Actually, I went out and spoke to Kyle."

"You actually talked to that psycho?" a male voiced from behind Clark.

Nicola rolled her eyes at the comment. She didn't have to glance up to know the voice belonged to Whitney.

"Yeah," Clark replied tightly as Whitney walked around the table to sit next to Lana. "He said that he was just trying to make sure Lana was okay."

"Do you believe him?"

"Yeah, I think I do."

"If I were there. I would have done something," Whitney said almost contemptuously as he sneered at Clark while he took a sip of his coffee.

Nicola couldn't help but give Whitney an incredulous look at his comment and sneering. _He can be such a j-hole._ Nicola glanced at Clark to see his reaction and found him returning Whitney's sneer with an annoyed look of his own. Clark, taking the high road, shrugged off Whitney's cutting remark and instead asked Lana if she remembered anything about the accident.

"Not really."

A deep sigh escaped Clark's mouth.

"I gotta get home. I'm glad you're okay."

Lana gives Clark a small smile before he stands up and walks away from their table. Once Clark was a few feet away, both Lana and Nicola turned to narrow their eyes at Whitney. The table was silent for several seconds, until Whitney finally couldn't take the glaring from both sides of the table.

"What?" asked Whitney innocently off the girls' looks.

Before Lana could open her mouth to scold her boyfriend, Nicola did it for her.

"It's one thing to be Mr. Macho Jocko Jealous Boyfriend; it's another to be a complete ass."

"Hey, all I said was if I had went to see Kyle I would have done more then just "talk" to the guy."

Lana was about to reply to that, but Nicola beat her to it again.

"Which thereby implies that Clark is a wimpy loser who can't defend someone's honor. And anyway, beating the crap out of someone who we aren't even one hundred percent sure did anything is the most moronic thing I've ever heard."

"Hey, I'm just trying to defend my girlfriend."

"If she wanted you to defend her, then she would ask."

"I'm still here, you know," Lana voiced suddenly, bringing the two's attention away from each other. "And I can speak for myself."

"Sorry, Lana," apologized Nicola. "Sometimes I can get overzealous."

"That's okay."

An uncomfortable silence filled the table as the three searched for common ground. The quite gave Nicola time to realize that with Clark left her ride home.

"Damn it," she cursed to herself, gathering her purse from the table.

"What?" asked Lana, concerned with her friend's sudden outburst.

"Clark was my ride."

"Now he's ditching people he promised rides to? Such a nice guy, I can see why you like him," Whitney said sarcastically.

Nicola scowled at Whitney.

"I never had the opportunity to ask him. SOMEONE ran him off before I had the chance."

"Hey, don't blame me."

"I would never dream of it," she snipped back. "I'll see you later, Lana."

Nicola stood up from the table and then turned to walk to the exit. Once she stepped out of the cafe, she moved toward the curb to glance up and down the street to see any immediate sign of Clark. She quickly spotted his tall frame across the street and down the road slightly leaning into her car. She was about to walk over to him when the same familiar voice from earlier that evening spoke to her from next to her, making her freeze in place.

"Looking for someone?" the smooth voice asked.

"Not you," Nicola muttered under her breath before begrudgingly slowly turning to fully face him.

"What was that?" asked Lex, the amusement in his tone indicating he had heard what she said.

"Nothing," lied Nicola. "I was looking for Clark, but I've found him."

"Ah, and exactly what do you need the young Mr. Kent for?"

"Sexual gratification," deadpanned Nicola. "A ride, Lex. I need a ride."

"Well, I would be more than willing to lend you my services," replied Lex, the double implication not lost on her.

"As much as I'd love you to give it to me," started Nicola with a smirk on her face, fully aware of the innuendo she was producing. "I'm going to have to pass on your... services."

She started to take a step forward to cross the street to where Clark was, but Lex smoothly glided in front of her to block her path.

"So, is this how our interactions are always going to go from now on?" he asked, peering down at her intensely.

"You mean strained and full of sexual tension that will never be resolved? Yep, pretty much."

Before Lex could retort or Nicola could make another attempt to cross the street, a body knocked into Nicola's right side from behind, causing her to fall forward and into Lex. Lex wrapped his arms around her to steady her while she mumbled what Lex could only assume were several swear words into his shoulder.

"Way to watch where you're going, j-hole," she yelled to the person who ran into her as she tried to remove herself from Lex's hold. She tiptoed to peer over Lex's shoulder to look at he assailant to find herself looking at the back of a certain blonde Smallville High quarterback.

"J-hole?" repeated Lex, amused by her choice of word.

"It's a combination of jack ass and a-hole."

"Of course."

Lex's arms were still wrapped around Nicola and he didn't appear to have the desire to do let go anytime soon as he gazed intensely down on her. Nicola tried to pull her eyes away from him, but she found herself entranced. But before Lex had the chance to take advantage of the situation, the mood was broken by a male voice yelling from behind him. Lex, slowly released one arm from around her so he could turn to see what the commotion was about. With one hand firmly placed around her waist so she couldn't sneak away from him, he glanced across the street to find Whitney appearing to confront a scruffy looking man who was with Clark. He couldn't hear what they were saying, but if their body language was any indication Whitney was continuing his performance as a j-hole - as Nicola had put it- with a new audience.

The confrontation lasted about ten seconds before Whitney walked away to his truck. Nicola pulled herself out of Lex's grip and was about to cross the street to catch up with Clark when Lex grabbed onto one of her wrists, pulling her back to him.

"We're not done here, yet," he told her.

Nicola looked down at the hand around her wrist with narrowed eyes. Before he had a chance to react, she grabbed his arm with her other hand, and twisted around him so his arm was behind him. She pushed the arm upward so a pain entered his shoulder.

"Yes, we are."

She pushed him slightly to the side and was about to walk across the street when she saw Clark swinging around to the driver's side of his truck to climb in. She cursed at the fact that Clark was leaving, but noticed that Whitney hadn't left yet. He was in front of the Rickman Industries Welcome Center talking to some semi-good-looking guy in his early thirties.

"I wonder who that is," she mumbled more to herself than anything else.

"Bob Rickman," Lex answered her unasked question.

"Ah, the Pesticide King himself. Funny, that's not how I pictured him."

"And exactly how did you picture him looking?"

"I don't know, old, slightly overweight with a receding hairline. Let's just say I didn't think he'd be the least bit attractive."

"You find Rickman attractive?"

"Well, I definitely don't think he's ugly."

She watched as Rickman shook Whitney's hand, gazing at him sort of intensely. Rickman said something more to Whitney as he held on to his hand a little longer than necessary. Once Rickman let go of Whitney's hand, Whitney turned to walk to his truck, a determined a look on his face. Nicola raised an eyebrow at the interaction, but then shrugged it off. Remembering she needed a ride, she started to cross the street toward Whitney's truck.

"So, this is how you want to leave it?" she heard a voice call from behind her as Whitney's engine roared to life.

She turned around to give Lex a stern look, hoping he would get the message if she were facing him.

"Basically? Yeah."

She saw Lex's eyes widen at something over her right shoulder. She turned her head to see what he was looking at to find Whitney's truck performing a u-turn, headed directly towards where she stood. Before she even had a chance to react, something hard slammed into her mid-section, causing her to fly backward and out of the trucks path. She hit the ground hard, and the force she was hit with caused her to roll across the pavement a couple times. When she finally came to a stop, her back was pressed against the ground and a body was pressed against hers from on top.

She closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths, trying to prevent the hysteria from the realization that she had been thisclose to being road kill. Once air pumped into her systems again, she opened her eyes to find piercing blue eyes staring down at her. Momentarily everything was forgotten as she found herself mesmerized by the lovely eyes in front of her. What felt like hours but were really seconds passed, and finally a voice spoke, breaking Nicole out of her reverie.

"Are you okay?"

Nicola blinked a couple of times to snap completely out of her daze. The face in front of her came in focus and she was suddenly all too aware that their bodies were crushed up against each other. But she was too sore and stunned at the situation to do anything about it.

"Yeah, I think so," she replied finally, finding her voice.

"Good," he replied, his trademark smirk replaced with a sincere soft smile.

A hand moved to her face to tuck some hair that had covered one of her eyes behind her ear. The hand lingered on the side of her face, cupping her cheek. Nicola closed her eyes and found herself leaning into the touch. She opened her eyes to find Lex's face moving towards her once again- apparently he had a one-track mind that evening. She was sure that he would actually kiss her this time, but once again a voice broke the moment.

"You two all right, there?" a male voice asked coolly, not sounding too concerned.

Lex turned his head to glare up at the person who had interrupted his attempt to get back the affections of the girl he cared for. He knew that slimy voiced anywhere.

"We're fine. Thanks for the concern," answered Lex as he moved off of Nicola to stand up.

"You never struck me as the white knight type, Lex."

"There's a lot about me you don't know, Bob," he replied as he stood up.

He was about to bend down to help Nicola up, but he found Rickman already lending her a hand. Nicola eyed the hand wearily briefly, but instead of taking the helping hand, she pushed herself off the ground and stood up. Lex smirked at the fact Nicola preferred getting up herself than take Bob Rickman's offered hand.

"How about you? Are you all right?" Rickman asked Nicola as he raked his eyes up and down her body.

Lex frowned at Rickman's leering appraisal, and glanced at Nicola to see her reaction. She was too busy checking out various wounds on her body to notice. He moved closer to Nicola to get the message to Rickman to back off.

"I'll live," Nicola replied flippantly. "I could kill for some aspirin though."

The pain in her head was throbbing and her face stung. After her fingers grazed the small cuts on her right cheek, Nicola moved her hand to the back of her head where pain was also coming from and felt some dampness. She brought her hand back in front of her to find it lightly covered in blood. A couple of swear words escaped from her mouth, causing Lex to chuckle lightly. He took a handkerchief out of his pocket and pressed it lightly against her head to slow the bleeding. She covered his hand with hers and gave him a weak smile.

"Thanks, I got it."

He dropped the hand from the back of her head and instead placed it on the middle of her back.

"Come on, we should really get you to a hospital," insisted Lex as he started to direct her toward his car.

As soon as he said the word "hospital" she stopped in place and tried to move away from him.

"No. No hospitals," she said, slightly panicky.

_Hospitals meant doctors and doctors meant blood work and blood work would lead to questions. _

"You hit the ground pretty hard, and that wound on the back of your head might need stitches. You might even have a concussion."

"It's not deep, I swear. I'm fine, really."

"I have a medical kit in my office right over there," said Rickman, nodding towards the Rickman Industries Welcome Center building.

"Thank you, but that's also unnecessary," replied Nicola, giving Rickman a small smile. "I just need to get home, pop a couple of aspirins, take a nice warm bath, and then call it a night. So, if y'all don't mind...I'm going to head home."

She turned away from the two men and started to walk in the direction of her house, her hand still nursing the wound on the back of her head. She had all intentions of slipping into a nearby alley and orbing home, but the two men needn't be aware of that.

"You aren't planning to walk all the way home, are you?" Lex asked, catching up with her.

"It appears so, considering I didn't get either ride I tried to acquire earlier tonight."

"Extensive articulation...That concussion seems unlikely, now."

"As much as I'd love to stick around and banter with you, my bathtub and some aspirin are calling my name."

"Nicola, quit being stubborn and just accept my ride."

She ignored Lex and continued to walk her path to her house.

"I've got aspirin in my car."

Nicola stopped in place and turned to glower at him.

"Resorting to bribery? A little desperate for my company, aren't ya Luthor?"

"What can I say? Desperate times call for desperate measures."

Nicola laughed at Lex's retort.

"If you have water in that Ferrari of yours, too, then it's a deal."

"As a matter of fact, I do."

"Beautiful. Well, then, Lexy-boy, lead the way."

Lex placed his hand at the small of her back again then led her in the other direction back to his car.

"And it's the Jag today, not the Ferrari, by the way."

"My mistake."

Neither Lex nor Nicola noticed Bob Rickman on the sidewalk watching them with a scowl on his face. As Lex helped Nicola into his car, Rickman grumbled to himself at the fact the woman in Lex's company had basically ignored his presences with the exception of the replies to his inquires over her injuries. _No one ever ignores the presence of Bob Rickman, _he thought to himself, aggravated. He was a multi-millionaire businessman who rarely walked into a room without someone recognizing him and spreading the word around. But he had just been disregarded over the likes of Lex Luthor. Cast aside as just any other bystander of an accident. _That's going to have to be remedied, _Rickman thought._ Lex Luthor is cocky enough as it is. I think I may have found one way to knock him down a few notches._

Back in Lex's car, as soon as Lex sat in the driver's seat, he leaned over to the glove compartment and pulled out a bottle of aspirin and a bottle of Ty Nant. He handed her the water then opened the bottle of pills to hand her a couple. As Lex started the car, Nicola tossed the pills into her mouth then gulped down a decent amount of water. As she thanked him, he geared up the engine and soon they were flying down the road going at Lex's normal fast pace. Lex kept taking peaks out of the corner of his eye to make sure Nicola was still doing okay.

"Are you sure you don't want to go to the hospital?"

"I'm sure. Please, Lex, could you just take me home?"  
"Of course, whatever you want."

Lex took his eyes off the road for a second to give her a reassuring smile, which she returned with a small one of her own. Most of the ride was spent in a silence. Nicola watched Lex as he drove and saw that his hands were wringing the steering wheel, turning his knuckles. She didn't need to see his aura to know that he was angry; his body language was screaming that fact to her. She also didn't need her mind reading ability to know whom that anger was directed towards, and as much as she wanted to have that anger built up toward Whitney, she couldn't. She wasn't saying that it was okay with her that Whitney had nearly plowed her over with his truck, but she knew something had to be off with him to do that. She wanted to believe he wasn't paying attention to where he was going because of hostility towards Kyle added to the stress of his father being sick, but something in Nicola's gut told her there was something else there, something more. But she just couldn't fathom what.

"Lex, I know what you're thinking. And as sweet as it is to want to avenge my nearly becoming road kill, I don't want you to go after Whitney."

"That bump to the head must have been more serious than I thought. Maybe I _should_ take you the hospital."

"This isn't a possible concussion talking, I told you, I'm completely fine."

"Then you must have gone insane because the guy tried to kill you."

"I think it's more than Whitney being a crappy-ass, homicidal driver."

"Well, I don't and once I get my hands on that-"

"Lex," Nicola cut in on his near rant. "Just let me take care of Whitney, okay? Please?"

Lex inhaled a deep breath and then slowly released it.

"Fine, but-"

"I know, I know. If I need help, I'll come to you first, okay?"

"That's all I ask."

Silence filled the car for the rest of the ride and it wasn't long before they were pulling up the drive to Nicola's house. Lex killed the engine and was about to step out of the car to open Nicola's door, when her hand tugged on his wrist to stop him. Lex turned to look at Nicola questioningly. Before he could even get a word out, she leaned forward and brushed her lips onto his cheek. Her lips lingered on his skin a little longer than necessary before she pulled away from him.

"Not that I minded, but what was that for?"

"To thank you...for, you know, saving my life and all."

"Well, not to be egotistical or anything, but I think I deserve a better reward than that."

"And exactly, what would you suggest?" Nicola asked with narrowed eyes.

"This," Lex replied before he suddenly placed a hand on the back of her head and crushed her lips against his. He kissed her with a fury and hunger that overwhelmed Nicola's senses and, for a brief moment, that passion was returned full force...until Nicola's rationality finally kicked in and overruled her hormones, thus causing her to push Lex away from her, hard.

"You fucking ass. Give me one good reason why I shouldn't slap- if not right hook- you?" she asked once she got her breath back.

"You cannot sit there and tell me that you did not feel it, too."

Nicola scowled at Lex, sick of this circular argument.

"You're right, I can't tell you that."

"Then what is the problem?"

"Everything."

"Could you perhaps be more specific?"

"I want to be in a relationship where I can declare how much they mean to me to the whole world, not be someone's bed buddy and keep the relationship behind closed doors."

"That's not-"

Nicola held up a hand to stop him as she cut him off.

"Look, Lex, the only thing I can offer you right now is friendship, and even that will take almost every ounce of my energy."

Lex was quiet for several moments as he considered the situation.

"Fine," asserted Lex finally. "If that is the only thing that will keep you in my life, then I'll take it."

"Good," said Nicola with a small smile on her face. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have a wound or two to nurse."

"Of course."

Nicola turned to open the car door, but Lex stopped her.

"Let me open that for you, since you have a head wound and all."

"It's just a couple of cuts Lex, I can still open my door," she insisted.

Lex gave her one of his stern looks that told her not argue with him. She let out a heavy sigh then leaned back into her seat as she waited for Lex to exit the car and swing over to her side to open her door. He helped her climb out of the Jaguar and proceeded to guide her to her front door.

"Well, thanks again for preventing my almost death," Nicola said to Lex when they reached her door.

"My pleasure. If you need anything, don't hesitate to call."

"I'll keep that in mind. Good night, Lex."

"Good night."

Nicola unlocked her door quickly then slipped inside. Once inside, she dropped her purse onto the table in the hallway before heading to the first floor bathroom to inspect her injuries. As she neared her destination, the sound of her mother's voice cutting through the silence from behind startled her.

"You're finally home; I was starting to get wor-" her mom's sentenced trailed off when she finally got a look of the state Nicola was in. "Oh my God, what happened to you?"

With Lex's handkerchief still pressed to the back of her head, she slowly turned to face her mom with a wry grin on her face.

"It's nothing. I just kissed some pavement tonight, that's all."

"And how exactly did you manage that feat?"

"It's a long story."

"Well, I have time. Here, let me heal those for you, first."  
As her mom moved toward her, Nicola held up a hand to stop her.

"No, don't. I have witnesses. It'll look really suspicious to them if I'm miraculously healed overnight."

"I suppose you're right."

"However, feel free to close the wound on the back of my head and prevent any infections from taking place."

Juliet gave her daughter a small smile before she took her hand to connect with her. Within seconds, the gash on the back of Nicola's head was reduced to appear to be at the last stage of the healing process. Juliet also managed to reduce something of the tension that had formed in Nicola's head that had caused the pounding to occur earlier in the evening. The small scratches that were on Nicola's right cheek remained since they were not as severe and were likely to cause attention if they were suddenly healed.

"Now, tell me what happened."

"The short version? It happened when I pushed out of the way from being hit by a pickup truck."

"A truck? Oh my God. Long version...I need the long version."

"Can we sit down? I'm starting to get a little woozy."

"Yes of course."

The two moved to the kitchen where Nicola sat down at the table while Juliet went to one of the cabinets to fetch some antiseptics to treat the wounds on Nicola's face.

"Well, the long version isn't really clear yet. There are some missing pieces, so what I'm going to tell you is not one hundred percent accurate, yet."

"Please, just tell me how you were almost hit by a truck. Where did this happen?"

"Outside of the Beanery. I was trying to find Clark to get a ride home, but then someone sidetracked me from my objective. While I was talking to this person, Clark decided to drive off, but then I saw my friend Whitney getting into his own truck, so I went over to ask him for the ride. Then the person I was talking to said something to me from behind, so I turned to reply. His eyes got really wide at something behind him, so I looked over my shoulder to see Whitney's truck headed right at me. Next thing I know, I'm rolling on the ground, away from a speeding car."

"Oh my God," gasped Juliet for the third time that night, momentarily pausing in her dabbing antiseptic on Nicola's cheek.

"Mom, could you cut out the "Oh my Gods" please? It's kind of getting to a point of overkill."

"Sorry. Wait, did you say it was your friend Whitney who almost ran you down? Whitney, the boy you went to Metropolis University Hospital with to visit his sick father?"

"Yes. But before you go jumping to any conclusions, there's more to the story then you, or even I, know. He didn't intentionally try to hit me with his car."

"It doesn't matter whether it was intentional or not, the boy acted recklessly and almost killed you. He should face the consequences of his actions."

"Please, mother, let me deal with Whitney and the consequences, okay? I know there's more to the story, I just haven't figured out what yet."

"But-"

"Please...promise me."

"Okay, but if you want my opinion, I think that the police should handle the matter."

"Please, just trust my judgment, okay?"

"Fine," sighed Juliet, accepting defeat. "So, who was this boy that saved you from death by truck?"

If Nicola had been drinking something at that moment, she would have choked on it.

"What makes you think a boy saved me?"

"Call it mother's intuition. So, who's the boy?"

"Why do you want to know who it was?"

"So I can express my gratitude to him, of course."

"Please don't make a big deal of this. It's over and done with. I already gave him enough thanks for both of us."

"I still want to thank him from saving my little girl's life."

"Mom, I'm not a little girl."

"Oh don't say that. To me, you'll always be my little girl."

Nicola rolled her eyes.

"Can I just say he was a friend and leave it at that?"

"No."

"I'll tell you on one condition."

"What?"

"You don't go out of your way to thank him. No phone calls, no calls to the press, no going over to the house. If you're in town and you happen to see him, then you can introduce yourself to him and thank him. But even then make sure it's low-key. Okay?"

"Fine."

"It was Lex Luthor."  
"Lex Luthor?" Juliet repeated, practically yelling the name.

Nicola almost rolled her eyes at her mother once again at her over exaggerated reaction.

"Yes."

"Honey, you can't expect someone like Lex Luthor to save your life and not show him your gratitude."

"Mom, Lex didn't save my life so he could get something in return or hold it over my head. He saved my life because I'm his friend and he would do the same for any of his other friends."

"Since when are you friends with Lex Luthor?"

An exasperated sigh escaped Nicola's mouth.

"We've been over this. Lex is friends with Clark and I'm friends with Clark, so naturally a friendship formed between Lex and me."

"Well, I knew that you knew Lex through Clark, but I thought you were just acquaintances. When did this form into a friendship?"  
"It just happened, okay?" snapped Nicola, not wanting to get into this conversation with her mother. "Can we please just drop it? I'm fine and that's all that should matter."  
"Fine," agreed Juliet.

The two women were silent as Juliet finished patching up Nicola's wounds. After Nicola thanked her mother for the mending, she got ready for bed. She found herself exhausted from the day's and evening's excursions, so instead of doing anything productive that night, Nicola opted for lying in her bed staring at the ceiling until sleep overcame her.

Early the next morning Nicola got a call from Clark about a little powwow in the Torch before school started. About forty-five minutes before it was time for her to meet up with her three friends, she found herself cursing in front of the mirror. The reason for her profanity was directed at the fact that during the hours of sleep that the possible slight concussion caused her to have, she had managed to form a small bruise on her cheek underneath and around where the cuts were. She tried to cover her scratches and bruise with some makeup, but knew that it was pointless and still visible. If no one had been around last night, then she could have quickly healed herself without worrying about exposure.

_But if no one had been around, that would mean Lex wouldn't have been there to prevent me from becoming a pancake,_ Nicola reminded herself.

So instead, she opted to reduce the bruising slightly so it was less visible. As she was about get into her Jeep to head for school, her cell phone began to ring. She glanced at the caller id to find that it was the person she had been thinking about moments before. She let out a small sigh before she opened her car door to throw her bag into it.

"Hello?" she answered her phone as she climbed into her Jeep.

"I was just calling to make sure you weren't in a concussion induced coma," came her reply. She could hear the smirk in his voice.

"Ah, how sweet of you," Nicola replied dryly. "But as you can hear, I'm quite conscious."

"Good. No lasting damage I hope?"

"Just a bruise and a couple scratches, but I think I'll live."  
"Never doubted it for a minute. Well, I just called to make sure you were okay."

"Well, thanks for the concern Lex."

"Of course."

Nicola hung up the phone and tossed it into her bag before starting her car. The clock on her radio caught her eye, and she cursed as she realized she was running late. She had spent most of the morning working on homework she had managed to neglect over the weekend and trying to make her injuries less noticeable. She hadn't even had time for breakfast. She threw the car into drive and quickly left her ranch, making her way to school. It wasn't long before she was walking into the Torch's office where Chloe, Clark, and Pete already were talking.

"Hey guys, sorry I'm late," Nicola apologized as she walked up to them where the boys sat at Chloe's desk.

"No problem, we were just-" Chloe trailed off as she turned around to face Nicola. "What the hell happened to you?"

"Gee, thanks," Nicola replied sarcastically. "Let's just say it involved my face and pavement and leave it at that, okay?"

"But-" started Chloe, but Nicola cut her off with a look.

"Okay, so why don't you guys fill me in on why Clark decided to drag us to school before we are required to be here?"

Clark quickly explained that he had run into Kyle Tippet after he had left the Beanery the night before. He offered Kyle a ride home, and after he dropped Kyle off, he saw Whitney's truck up the road a little. Her eyes widened at the mention of Whitney. Suddenly a few more pieces of the puzzle were being revealed, however many more things were fuzzy. Clark explained that when he went back to the trailer, he found Kyle swinging a bat at Whitney, but Clark had managed to prevent him from making contact. Now Kyle's in a nice jail cell at the county jailhouse.

"Tippet hasn't broken hermit status in years and all of a sudden he's one of Smallville's most wanted?" said Chloe as she walked over to the printer to grab something they had printed before Nicola had gotten there.

"Something must have made him snap," commented Pete.

"I think it was Bob Rickman," Clark declared.

"Rickman?" Nicola repeated, eyebrows creased into a frown. _And the plot thickens._ "What makes you think it's Rickman?"

"Well, the reason I ran into Kyle in the first place is because I heard from Lex that Rickman was trying to buy our farm, so I went to go talk to him. When I got there, Kyle was coming out of the Center."

"Yeah, but what does our rural Rodin have against Rickman, other than the obvious 'poisoning the environment' angle?" Chloe inquired.

"I don't know. Could you do some digging, find a connection?" Clark asked Chloe, unintentionally giving her a dose of his puppy dog eyes.

"Yeah. Absolutely," Chloe replied quickly. "Sounds like an interesting story- tree-hugging hermit versus pesticide tycoon."

Chloe holds a separate story with a picture of Rickman alongside one of Kyle. Pete takes the two and looks between the pictures.

"What do you think they have in common?" he asked as Nicola peered over his shoulder to take a better look of the two articles.

"Definitely not their personal grooming habits," snarked Chloe, which caused Nicola to chuckle.

The squeaking of one of the doors opening pulled the foursome's attention, and they glanced over to see Lana stalking into the room. Lana was radiating one of the emotions that people rarely saw on her: anger.

"Lana," Clark greeted the girl of his dreams. He noticed that a serious expression was plastered on her face, and concern for the brunette overcame him. "Hey, what's wrong?"

As Clark asked the question, he rose from his seat and moved over to where Lana stood. Lana crossed her arms, making her body language scream irritation. She glanced over at Pete, Chloe, and Nicola, her expression not waning.

"Can you give us a minute?"

"Yeah," replied Chloe slowly.

She turned and tapped Pete on his shoulder.

"Actually, I was just," Nicola started argue, annoyed with Lana's kicking them out of the office they- not her- worked in. However, the almost menacing look she got from Lana told her it wasn't worth the fight. "Leaving. Right. Good luck, Clark."

With that, Nicola followed Pete and Chloe out of the Torch.

"Do you believe the gall of that girl?" Nicola started to rant as soon as Pete shut the door behind them. "Who does she think she is kicking _us_ out of the Torch? If she wasn't my friend, I'd so smack some sense into her."

Chloe and Pete laughed at Nicola's ranting.

"I don't know about you, but I'm glad I'm not Clark right now," said Pete. "She looked pretty pissed."

"Shh. I want to hear what they're saying," Chloe shushed them as she pressed ear to the door. Pete and Nicola followed suit and pressed their own ears against the doors window. Luckily, the blinds to the door's window were shut, preventing Clark and Lana from noticing their spies. Unfortunately, the two brunettes weren't talking loud enough for the trio to hear what they were saying clearly. Nicola closed her eyes to concentrate on hearing what the two were talking about and kept thinking that she wished that she were in the room. Suddenly, it was if her soul left her body and the next thing she knew she was standing on the other side of the door, inside the room. She gasped quietly, and her eyes widened in fear that she somehow managed to orb from the hallway where witness could see her to inside the Torch office. She quickly hid behind a desk so Clark and Lana, who luckily hadn't seen her sudden entrance, wouldn't spot her as she panicked on her inability to control her powers.

"...Overzealous, but his heart's in the right place," she heard Lana say, taking her away from her thoughts.

"I just don't think Kyle would do something like that," replied Clark. "He doesn't seem like a violent person."

"And you can tell that from knowing him for two days?" Lana's disbelief at Clark's answer was evident in her tone. "He's lived in the woods alone for ten years."

"That makes him odd, not dangerous."

"Whitney wouldn't attack anybody."

"He strung me up in a field."

A slightly sardonic-sounding sigh escapes Lana's lips.

_Not a smart comeback there, Clarkie boy, _Nicola thought to herself.

"So that's what this is about?" asked Lana in slight disbelief. "You haven't forgiven him."

"Lana, I just think there's something else going on here."

"Yeah, there is. You're looking for an excuse to knock Whitney. You know what he's going through with his dad. If you don't like him, just say it. Don't pretend to be his friend."

_Ouch, _thought Nicola. _Harsh much?_

Nicola heard the retreating footsteps of Lana followed by the slamming of a door. She felt the faint touch of someone's hand shaking her shoulder, but found herself mystified since there was no one next to her where she crouched next to the desk.

"Nicola, you alright there?" she heard the faint voice of Pete ask her.

Nicola closed her eyes, and then gave her head a small shake. When her eyes opened she found herself back in the hallway next to a concerned Pete and Chloe.

"What just happened?" she asked her friends.

"You tell us," replied Chloe. "You went all space cadet on us for a minute."

"Wait, so I was here the whole time?" Nicola asked.

"Uh, yeah," Pete answered her this time, confused at her question. "But it was like the lights were on, but nobody's home."  
"Oh. Okay..." Nicola digested the information her friend gave her.

She was one hundred percent sure that she had left her two friends in the hallway and transported into the Torch's office, but according to her friends, she never left...at least not physically. _What does that mean?_

"Are you sure okay? Do you want me to take you to the nurse or something?" Pete asked, still concerned for his friend.

"No, I'm fine. Really."

"Good," interjected Chloe. "Now let's go back into the office. Someone's exit included the slamming of the door, so it must have been juicy. I couldn't hear a thing, though. How about you guys?"

"Nope, nothing," answered Pete.

Nicola shook her head in response.

In a slight daze as she mulled over the possibilities of what just happened, Nicola followed Pete and Chloe back into the Torch's office. As soon as they walked through the door, the sight of Clark sitting on the edge of the desk going over what just happened with Lana caught their eyes.

"Hey big guy, how'd it go?" asked Chloe as she joined him at the desk.

Nicola paid close attention to what Clark's answer was to find out whether the conversation she thought she overheard between Clark and Lana was real or all in her head.

"Lana thinks that because I think there's more going on than just Kyle attacking Whitney that I'm just trying to find a excuse to knock Whitney."

"What did Whitney tell her was the reason why he went to see Kyle?" asked Pete.

"That he was just trying to talk with him. She doesn't think that he went there with violent intentions. She said that 'Whitney can be a little overzealous, but'-"

"His heart's in the right place," Nicola finished for him quietly with wide eyes, causing her three friends to gawk at her.

"Yeah. How did you know that?" Clark asked her.

"I thought you didn't hear anything," said Chloe.

"Umm...I guess I might have heard bits and pieces," lied Nicola.

"Uh huh," replied Chloe, obviously the only one of the three who didn't accept that answer, but she wasn't going to bring it up right then.

"Clark, I think you may be right on your theory about Rickman," Nicola told him, trying to get the topic to change. "I didn't get a chance to tell you this earlier, but last night, after you left the Beanery, I went outside to look for you. I saw Whitney's confrontation with Kyle, and then after Whitney walked away from you two, he started to talk to Rickman about something. Then he got into mission mode or something and took off in his truck."

_Almost running me down, _she added to herself.

"And you didn't mention this earlier because?"

"Because Lana walked into the room."

Before they could continue the conversation, the warning bell for first period rang.

"Well we better head to class," said Clark. "We'll talk later, okay?"

Everyone grabbed their stuff, then Clark, Pete, and Chloe started to walk out of the Torch together, but Nicola called out to stop one of them.

"Hey, Chloe, do you think you could hang back and talk for a sec?"

"Yeah, sure. I'll catch up with guys later," Chloe told the guys.

"Okay. Bye ladies," said Pete.

"See you guys later," said Clark.

"Alright, so what is up with you this morning?" asked Chloe as soon as the boys left the room. "First the bruise and scratches on the face, then the space out in the hall? What's going on?"

Nicola used her telekinetic powers to close the door so no one could overhear their conversation before she moved to the couch to plop down onto it. She burrowed her face into her hands as she let out a small grown.

"God, where do I even begin?" Nicola muttered, more to herself than to Chloe.

"Why don't you start with how you got the bruise and scratches?" Chloe suggested as she sat down on the couch next to Nicola. "And why you just didn't heal them before you got to school?"

"Because I had a couple of witnesses who will probably get suspicious if they see me today perfectly intact," retorted Nicola, moving her head out of her hands and instead looking at Chloe.

"Witnesses to what exactly?"

"I was almost hit by a pickup truck."

"A pickup truck?" gasped Chloe. "What? How? Are you okay? Who was driving it? Did you call the police?"

Despite everything, Nicola still managed to laugh at the fact that Chloe was quick to go into reporter mode.

"I'm fine. I had a pretty nasty gash on the back of my head, but my mom basically healed it for me last night, so it's just the physical ailments on my face."

"That's good."

"And about the other questions...you know how I was telling Clark about how I saw Whitney talking to Rickman last night and then he got all into mission mode and took off?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, what I neglected to add was that when Whitney took off in his truck...it was headed straight for me."

"Oh my God. I knew Whitney has troubles driving his truck, if the number of times he's had to replace them this school year is any indication, but I never thought he was careless enough to hit a pedestrian."

"I know. And after hearing Clark's suspicions of Bob Rickman, I'm pretty sure there was more to it than Whitney being a reckless driver."

"What are you thinking?"

"Well, it happened after Rickman talked to him and before he got into fight he can't really remember with Tippet. And since there might be something between Tippet and Rickman..."

"You think that Rickman somehow influenced Whitney to go to Kyle's trailer to "talk" to him."

"Bingo."

Chloe digested this new bit of information for a minute before another question for Nicola was posed in her mind.

"How did you manage not to be flattened by Whitney's truck? I know you didn't orb out of the way because that would cause some negative attention plus you wouldn't have the injuries."

"That would be my knight in shining Jaguar," answered Nicola wryly.

It took Chloe only a few seconds to realize whom her friend was talking about.

"Lex? Lex Luthor saved you?"  
"Yep."

"Wow. That would make such an awesome story."  
"I know."

"That's like Daily Planet newsworthy. _Son of Billionaire Tycoon Saves Secret Ex-flame/Smallville High School Student_," Chloe made up a headline. "Too bad it will never see print."

"Well, except for the ex-flame part, yeah. Sorry."

"Don't be. My best friend's not a pancake, that's all that matters," replied Chloe, giving Nicola one of her megawatt smiles.

"Why thank you."

"You're welcome."

"So, onto my next problem."

"What to do about your hero?"

"Uh, no. That's already been resolved. The angsty love story that is Lex and Nicola's relationship has come to a close and is now just a casual, blooming friendship."

"Really?" Chloe didn't sound convinced.

"At least for the moment. Who knows what the future holds."

"Well, that's good."

"Yeah. It's one less thing I have to worry about at the moment."

"So, if you weren't referring to Lex as being your next problem, then what?"

"Remember the whole spacing thing earlier when we were trying to eavesdrop?"

"Yeah?"

"It was a little more than that."

"How so?"

"You know how Pete said it was like the lights were on, but nobody was home?"

"Uh huh."

"Well, he was basically right. One second I'm trying to concentrate on hearing what Clark and Lana are saying wishing I was in the room to hear them, the next I'm inside the Torch listening to their argument."

"Wait, are you saying when you looked like you were spaced out, you were actually inside here listening what they were saying?"

"Essentially, yes."

"But you were outside with Pete and I the whole time. You couldn't have possibly orbed into here for that length of time without either of us noticing."

"I know," groaned Nicola in frustration. "I just wish I knew what happened so I can learn to control it. I can't afford to accidentally do it again in front of witnesses."

Chloe mulled over what Nicola had told her about this potential new power. It sounded so familiar to her, but she couldn't figure out what it was. After several seconds, it suddenly hits her.

"Astral projection," Chloe yelled out suddenly with a big grin on her face.

"What?" asked Nicola, startled by Chloe's outburst.

"Astral projection," repeated Chloe, quieter this time, but the grin still plastered on her face. "You know, like the power Pru developed in Charmed to be in two places at once?"

"Yeah, I know what you're talking about. But I told you, I'm not a "Charmed One"- I don't have all their powers."

"I know that. But there are all these theories and stories about astral projection- that we have the ability to do it. I don't see why you, an alien who has the capability to tap into the large percentage of brain mass us regular humans use, can't access that power."

A smile broke on Nicola's face before she gave Chloe a big hug.

"Where were you when I found out that I had the ability to make holographic memories? I really could have used you then, because that totally freaked me out."

"Well, I'm just glad to be of service now."

"So am I."

The tardy bell broke their moment, causing the two girls to groan.

"Well, I guess we better head to class," said Chloe as the two girls stood up from the couch.

A mischievous grin graced Nicola's face, causing Chloe to raise an eyebrow in amusement.

"What would you say if I suggested we ditched first period?"

"And exactly what would we do?"

"I don't know. I'm kind of hungry. And I was thinking of maybe getting some espresso drinks."

"Ooh...that does sound good."

"In Italy," finished Nicola.

"You're kidding," laughed Chloe.

"No, I'm not. I know this great bistro in Rome that sells some of the best cappuccinos and has a good breakfast food selection, plus I know a place nearby that I can orb to without being spotted."

"I don't know..."

"Come on, Sullivan, live a little. I promise we will be back in time for second period. I think you can afford to not be an overachiever for fifty minutes. I know I could use a little break."

Chloe chewed it over for a couple seconds before she grinned.

"Let's do it," she said, outstretching her hand for Nicola to take.

"Good choice."

As soon as Nicola had a hold on Chloe's hand their molecules were pulled apart, and almost as fast as a blink of an eye, Chloe found herself being put back together in an empty alleyway. The feeling of her molecules forming together was a surreal experience.

"Whoa, that was so cool," said Chloe as soon as she was whole again, amazed that she still had her bag with her.

"Have you ever been to Rome before?"

"Unfortunately a plant manager's salary does not allow such vacations."

"Then prepare for something much cooler. Close your eyes. Trust me," said Nicola off of Chloe's skeptic look. Chloe let out a small sigh, but then conceded her friend's request. "Don't worry, I'll make sure you don't fall on your face."

"You better."

Nicola led Chloe out of the alley and then after what felt like several blocks, the two finally came to a stop.

"Now, open them."

Chloe slowly opened eyes and when she saw what was in her view, a small gasp escaped her throat. Several hundred feet away was the towering sight of the famous Coliseum in Rome.

"Wow. Now I wish I had remembered to grab a camera...not that anyone would believe me if I showed them the picture, but it still would have been nice."

"You are in luck," said Nicola as she opened her messenger bag to reveal that she had her camera she used for photography class in it. "Here stand right there."

Nicola backed away from Chloe so the Coliseum could clearly be seen behind her. After Nicola snapped a couple of Chloe posing for the camera, she stopped an Italian man walking by who didn't seem to be in a hurry. Chloe watched in amazement as Nicola asked something to the man in what sounded like almost flawless Italian. Nicola gave the camera to the man, and then strode over to Chloe to wrap an arm around her shoulders.

"You speak Italian. Should I even ask?"

"It's the curse of only needing two hours of sleep mixed with photographic memory."

"If only I could be blessed with that curse," joked Chloe.

They smiled for a couple of pictures and then the man handed Nicola her camera back. As Nicola put the camera into her bag, Chloe thanked the man in Italian- one of the few Italian phrases she knew.

"Come on, we better get going to the bistro for those drinks now if we want to get back to school on time. It's only a couple blocks up this way."

"You know, I'm almost tempted to skip the whole day and just stay here in Rome."

"I'm right there with you, but there is the small fact that we've already been spotted by our friends who we have classes with. It would look a little suspicious if we both turned up missing."

"That's true. At least it's a Friday, so it's not that bad. Anyway, we could come back another day."

"Sounds like a plan."

It wasn't much longer before they found themselves at the bistro that Nicola had been talking about. They got a nice table outside where the Coliseum was still in view and after a couple of minutes of looking over the menu, the waiter came and took their order. As Nicola once again spoke in very good Italian, Chloe became a little envious.

"I've always wanted to speak Italian. It's too bad our school doesn't teach it."

"I can teach it to you if you want. I have a few books and tapes you can borrow too."

"That would be awesome, thanks."

"Not a problem."

"So, just out of curiosity, how many languages do you speak?"

"Not too many. Besides Italian, I know French, Spanish, and Japanese. I'm trying to learn Russian, Mandarin, German, Greek, and Portuguese, although I have no idea when I'm going to need to know any of those."

"You should become a spy or something. I could see you being all Sydney Bistro like and have all these different kinds of aliases."

"Right," laughed Nicola.

"I'm serious. I could see you kicking some spy ass, going on missions. You know how much they'd kill to have someone like you on their force?"

"Which is probably why I wouldn't ever volunteer myself to them."

"I guess you're right."

Their drinks and small breakfast meals being brought to them interrupted their chatting. Chloe breathed in the aroma of the cappuccino she ordered, moaning at the wonderful scent, before taking a sip. Another small moan escaped her mouth at the frothy goodness.

"Mmm...This has gotta be one of the best cappuccinos I've ever had."

"I totally concur."

"Italy is definitely one of my favorite places now."

"I'm happy to have contributed to that."

For the next several minutes they were too busy eating and drinking to talk. Once they were done, Nicola glanced at her clock to find they had about seven minutes until second period started. When they got the check, a realization hit Chloe.

"How are we going to pay for this? I don't know about you, but I don't really carry around Euros in my pocket."

"Well, they're not in my pocket, but…" started Nicola as she pulled a wallet out of her purse. Inside, there were a few types of different currency awaiting her. She pulled out as many Euros would cover the tab then tossed them onto the table. Chloe raised an eyebrow at the action. "Last time I was in Europe, I exchanged too many US dollars for Euros, so I had some left over," Nicola explained.

"Oh. I thought for a second that maybe you could use your powers to manipulate money."

"I wish. Trust me, I've tried to do that, but it you're always able to tell it's a fake."

"That sucks."

"Tell me about it."

The two girls finally stood up from the table, and then headed for the nearest empty alleyway so they could orb back to Smallville. They arrived at the school just before the bell ending first period rang. The rest of Nicola's school day had proved be uneventful, well, except for the rumors she heard being spread around the school on how she got the bruises and scratches on her face. Apparently, last night she went to Metropolis for some clubbing and then got into a catfight with some girl over some nameless, faceless guy. She did nothing to put out the fire; in fact, she found herself fanning it- making up even more outrageous ones. However, the rumors were the last thing on her mind at the moment. After school she found herself in the school parking lot searching for a certain truck or the blonde who drove it. Unfortunately, by the time she got to the parking lot, Whitney or his truck were no where to be seen. With no idea of where Whitney could have gone, Nicola accepted defeat and instead headed home.

Later that evening, as she was about to walk into her night school class, she got a call from a panicky Clark. Something about Rickman buying the Kent farm. Since class was about to start, she told she would meet him at the Beanery in an hour after her class got out, which was fine with Clark because he was meeting Lex there anyway around the same time. As soon as class was over, she headed straight for the Beanery. When she walked through the café's door she noticed Clark waiting in line at the counter to order some drinks.

"So I'm here, what's this about Rickman getting your farm?" she asked her friend as she slid next to him in line.

"Rickman came to our farm today to talk to my dad about buying the farm from him."  
"But your dad turned him down, right?"

"He signed a contract."

"He what? Clark, I know your dad would never sell his farm- regardless of the sum of money he was getting in turn."

"But he did."

There was a pause in their conversation as they ordered and paid for their and Lex's drinks.

"How did Rickman pull that one?"

"I have no clue. My dad said all Rickman did was make his case, and then shook his hand. One minute he's telling Rickman that there was no way he was going to sell the farm, the next he had the contract in his hand."

"It could not have been that simple."

"That's what I said. And I think that there is more to it than that. Exactly what, I'm not sure on yet."

"We'll figure it out."

The two got their drinks then started to head for where Lex sat waiting for Clark. As they made their way, they saw Whitney and Lana standing near the pinball machine near the entrance. An exchange of looks took place between Clark and the couple, the two not noticing Nicola behind Clark.

"Ouch," said Lex as the two sat down on the sofa across from him. "What's that all about?"

"I just won't cave on my opinion of Kyle Tippet," explained Clark. "It's put me on the outs with Lana."

"Plus, Whitney's being an ass about it all," added Nicola.

"So you're Atticus," Lex said to Clark.

Clark looks confused, obviously not knowing Lex's reference.

"Please tell me you're joking," said Nicola. "I had to read that book in the eighth grade- I thought it was a nationwide school requirement."

Clark still had no idea what the two were talking about.

"Atticus Finch, _To Kill a Mockingbird_?" Lex clarified for Clark.

"Never read it."

"And the Smallville education system fails us again," Nicola said, dramatically.

Lex smirked at Nicola's commentary, but didn't retort to it, instead he continued his lecture to Clark. "You should. You two have a lot in common. Small-town heroes. Believe in the truth. Not willing to back down."

"How's it end?"

"It's not about the ending, it's about the journey"

Nicola snorted at Lex's Zen-like reply, earning narrowed eyes from him. Clark was too busy glancing over at Whitney and Lana to notice the exchange.

"What kills me is that I know that I'm right. I just wish I could get them to see it."

"That, my friend, is the key to leadership- not only knowing you're right, but convincing everyone else. If you can do that, the world's your oyster."

"Right now, I'd settle for getting our farm back."

"The good news is the deal's worth three times market value. The bad news is, it's ironclad. Meaning it'll take a dozen extra lawyers. Fortunately, I've got an army of them."

Nicola refrained from verbally scoffing Lex's comment, and instead rolled her eyes.

"For once, I think my parents will be glad for your help."

"I'd love to know what Rickman said to convince your father. I know the farm's in debt, but he's going to pave it over and turn it into a wasteland. Hardly better than the offers I've made."

"I just know that my father would never sell the farm."

"Except that he did. Rickman's known for getting past people's defenses, but that's just good business...unless you think there's more to it than that."

Clark considers what Lex has said, and a determined expression forms on his face. He grabs his coat and stands.

"Where are you going?" Lex asked Clark.

"Jail," replied Clark simply before he turned to leave, without even giving Nicola a word of farewell.

"No need to say goodbye, Clark," muttered Nicola as her friend walked away from her for the second time in two nights without a goodbye in her direction. "Remind me again why I put up with him?"

"Because he's your friend, despite his vices?" suggested Lex.

"Oh, yeah...that."

Nicola slid over to where Clark had been sitting so she was now across from Lex.

"How's your head?" asked Lex, concerned.

"Better than it looks."

"Have you taken care of Whitney yet, or do you want me to do it for you?"

"Not yet. But thank you for reminding me. I should go talk to him now, since he's in my sights," she said, standing up from her seat.

"You sure that's wise?"

"I'm not going to try to kill him like you would if you got your hands on him, so yeah, I think it's fine."

"Alright. Remember, I'm just a holler away."

"Noted. See ya, Lex."

"Night."

She turned towards the Beanery's entrance to see that Whitney and Lana were still standing in the same place as earlier. Nicola strolled over to where they stood.

"Hey guys," she greeted as she slipped next to them.

They both turned to face her, and Whitney's eyes widened at the sight of Nicola's battered face.

"What happened to you?" he asked, more out of curiosity than concern.

""Didn't you hear, I went to a bar and got into a brawl with some girl and her boyfriend," Nicola said sarcastically.

"You went to a bar last night?" asked Whitney, missing the sarcasm.

"No. Actually, this happened when someone pushed me out of the way of an oncoming vehicle," she told him, forgetting that Lana was next to him to gauge some kind of reaction from him. Unfortunately, all she got from Whitney was confusion.

"Oh my God," gasped Lana. "That's what really happened?"

"I was crossing the street to talk to someone, when a car suddenly pulled out from their parking spot, then did a u-turn headed straight for me," staring straight at Whitney to see his reaction.

"Oh my God," Lana said again. "I hope the driver was arrested."

"Actually, I haven't filed charges."

"Why not?"

"Because the situation is more complicated than just simple reckless driving."

"Well, I'm glad you're okay."

"Thanks," Nicola smiled weakly at Lana. She was disappointed to find that Whitney showed no acknowledgement of the incident, but for all she knew it was a front. "Lana, do you think I could borrow your boyfriend for a couple of minutes? I missed Trig today and I wanted to go over what I missed with him."

"Sure."

"I left my Trig book in the car. Could you come with me to get it, Whitney? Great," she said, without giving him a chance to reply. "We'll be right back."

She grabbed his arm and led him out of the Beanery.

"What the hell's your problem, Lively?" asked Whitney as he ripped his arm away, annoyed with the brunette.

"I needed to talk to you in private," answered Nicola as she guided Whitney to her car so they could move away from people who could overhear their conversation.

"Okay, fine, so now you have me to yourself. What do you want?"

"I wanted to know what was up with you last night?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Last night...after you left the Beanery..." Nicola tried to clue in Whitney on what she was talking about.

"Apparently I attacked Kyle, or hasn't Kent told you his version of last night's events yet"

"No, not that. I was referring to the fact that you nearly killed me with your truck last night."

"I what?"

"The driver that suddenly pulled their car out from their parking spot, then did a u-turn headed straight for me...yeah that was you."

"I think I'd remember if I almost hit someone with my truck."

"Well you don't and you did. If you want someone else to confirm it, you can go ask inside and ask Lex Luthor. I'm sure he'd be more than happy to tell you what you did."

"Look, I honestly don't-"

"Remember," Nicola finished for him, the two were now stopped at her car, which was only a few shops down from the Beanery. "I know- I heard you. What do you remember from the time between you talked to Tippet and when you got to Tippet's place?"  
"I remember being really pissed that Tippet blew me off, then getting into my truck. After driving around awhile to blow off steam, I decided to go to Tippet's to talk to him. The next thing I know, he's attacking me."

As Nicola processed what Whitney had told her, movement from the less active side of Main Street caught her eye. Her sight moved to the movement and saw that a police officer, with the same determined look on his face that Whitney had the night before, was leaving the Rickman Industries Welcome Center. Seeing this made her realize Whitney never mentioned talking to Bob Rickman in his recurrences of the evening prior.

"What did Rickman say to you, because whatever it was must seemed to have triggered your rampage?"

"Again...what the hell are you talking about, Lively? Who's Rickman?"

"Bob Rickman? Pesticide King? He introduced himself to you after you talked to Kyle and Clark. I kind of got the HoYay vibe from him when he shook your hand because that was a little too intense to be a friendly exchange," she mumbled that last part to herself more than to Whitney.

"That pesticide tycoon? Why would he talk to me?"

"Wait, so you seriously don't even remember talking to Bob Rickman?"

"No, I don't. I've never even met the guy."

"But you did. I saw it with my own two eyes. So did Lex."

"Look, I don't know what to tell you. I don't remember nearly running you over or talking to Rickman last night."

Nicola saw no deception in his aura or in his eyes. Nicola decided that she wasn't going to get any answers from Whitney, then she realized she had to go to the source of everyone's recent problems; Bob Rickman. All he did was shake a person's hand and chaos engulfed them.

"Shake their hand," Nicola repeated to herself quietly, suddenly more pieces of the puzzle falling into place. She remembered watching Rickman shaking Whitney's a little intensely the night before which seemed to trigger his sudden urge to go see Kyle. And Clark said that his father claimed all Rickman did was shake his hand and suddenly a contract was signed.

"What was that?" asked Whitney, wondering what she was babbling about.

"I've gotta go," she said, sounding somewhat distracted. "Thanks leaving your girlfriend to talk to me."

"No problem."

Nicola turned to cross the street, when Whitney's voice made her face him once again.

"I may not remember almost hitting you last night, but if I did, I am sorry."

"Don't worry about it. If I didn't think so before, I know now that there's something else going on."

"Let me make it up to you," said Whitney.

"Right," scoffed Nicola.

"I'm serious. Think of it as a friend making up a mistake they made against another friend."

Nicola gawked at Whitney skeptically for a moment, before conceding to his suggestion.

"Fine. When you figure out the details, give me a call, but I really have to go now."

"Okay, see ya."

"Bye."

With that, Nicola turned and hustled across the street, after making sure no traffic was coming. Within seconds, she found herself in front of the Welcome Center. She paused for a moment in front of the entrance, questioning whether or not she was really going to go through with her confrontation. She shrugged off her apprehension- there was something strange going on here concerning Rickman, and she was determined to find out what it was. She pushed open the door, which was still unlocked and as she stepped into the building, she saw Rickman reclining in a chair with his feet on the desk. He was looking at something in a folder, and if he heard her entrance, he showed no sign of it.

"I hear you have the ability to convince people do your bidding with the blink of the eye," her voice cut through the silence, finally grabbing Rickman's attention. "Or was it shake of the hand?"

The amused smirk Rickman had been wearing when he looked up from his papers to find Nicola wavered as he heard the latter part of her sentence.

"I'm not sure what it is you're alluding to. I'm just a very persuasive person."

"Right," scoffed Nicola. "You're not _that_ charming. So, you're trying to tell me that you just "convinced" Jonathan Kent to sell his farm over to you and strongly "suggested" to Whitney Fordman that he should attack Kyle Tippet?"

"To the first statement, I'm a good a businessman; I just convinced Mr. Kent that it would in his best interest to sell his property to my company. And to the latter accusation, I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Really? So you want me to believe that it was a coincidence that after Whitney talked to you last night, that he just happened to almost run me down with his truck without realizing it and then went over to Kyle Tippet's place to wait for him to come home so he could permanently put him out of commission?"

Rickman suddenly realized that this was the woman that Lex had saved the night before who had essentially ignored his presence. The smirk that had been on his face earlier returned, happy that he was now able to put his plan into swing.

"That was you last night, wasn't it? I'm glad Lex got you home in one piece."

"Thanks," Nicola said dryly, knowing he was trying to divert the subject at hand.

"I don't believe we were introduced last night. Bob Rickman," he said, extending his hand out for her to shake.

Nicola glanced at his hand hesitantly. On the one hand, he might be trying to put the voodoo on her like he had on Mr. Kent and Whitney, but on the other, she might be able to use her own powers to tap into his mind and get the whole story. Deciding to ignore her uncertainty, she took his hand as she gave him her own name.

As soon as their hands touched, Nicola connected with Rickman and entered his memories. The first thing that came to her was the event that caused Rickman to have the ability to control people's minds. Then flashes of all the people Rickman had screwed over with just the shake of the hand flew through her mind. Her eyes widened in horror as she saw some of even more malevolent deeds he did with his powers, such as convincing people who were trying to bring him down to kill themselves. But as she did this, she heard the faint voice of Rickman talking to her.

"You're slightly attracted to me, aren't you? Well what do you say we do something about it? Come have coffee at the Beanery with me."

"Okay, sure," Nicola heard herself reply.

"You left Lex there by himself, a few minutes ago, right?"

"Yes, I did."

"Great. I know you still have some feelings for him, but he's hurt you. You want to hurt him back. If we see Lex, you should kiss me...that should sufficiently hurt Lex and be fun for me."

For a brief second, Nicola gained control of her body and mind to shout, "No!"

His hands were still wrapped around one of her own as gazed intensely into her eyes.

"Yes."

Whatever control she managed to obtain earlier left, and suddenly she was repeating Rickman with a "Yes" of her own. Before she knew it, she was walking out of the Welcome Center with her arm attached Rickman's. As they stepped onto the sidewalk, Rickman noticed Lex across the street exiting the Beanery. Rickman smirked to himself at the beautiful timing.

"Look, there's Lex right now."

Nicola involuntarily turned and saw Lex standing in front of the Beanery's entrance. She panicked when Lex abruptly looked in the direction of where she and Rickman stood. Nicola saw him frown as he saw that she and Rickman were together. Against her will, she turned back to Rickman, and then wrapped her arms around his neck. Nicola eyes widened again at the realization she really didn't have any control as she tried to stop herself from doing what she knew she was about to do. Suddenly, her lips were on Rickman's and she started to make out with him in front of the Center. She felt hands roam around her body, causing her to shudder, and not in a good way. Nicola mentally gagged as Rickman started to stick his tongue into her mouth, and she tried to will herself to stop the kissing. Luckily, a hand forcefully grabbed her upper arm and ripped her away from Rickman, dragging her down the street. Unfortunately, there were side effects to being pulled out of her trance.

"Lex, what are you doing?" Nicola asked him, pulling herself from his grips.

"Funny, that's exactly what I was going to ask you."

"I was just going into the Welcome Center to talk to Rickman."

"It looked like you were doing a lot more than just "talking" with Rickman. Honestly, if you were trying to make me jealous, you failed. You succeeded only in pissing me off."

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"You were playing a game of tonsil hockey with Rickman in the middle of the sidewalk, letting him grope you, no less - that's what I'm talking about."

Nicola started to laugh hard at Lex's crazy accusation.

"Are you high? I wasn't making out with Rickman. I think I'd remember if I did that."

"You can't deny something that I clearly saw you engaging in- especially if I stopped you from doing continuing it."

"Well, you're wrong. I never even got a chance to talk to Rickman yet. I was about to go into the building when you stopped me."

"I don't know what to tell you, Nicola. You were kissing Rickman, I saw it with my two eyes."

"Well, you were obviously hallucinating. Look, Lex, I've got to talk to Rickman before he leaves his office."

Lex, convinced and confused that she obviously didn't remember what she was just doing seconds before -then again, he wouldn't blame her for blocking out such a horror- he decided to just play along with her for the time being.

"I may have been hallucinating, but I did just see Rickman drive past us in his BMW a second ago."

"Crap. Well, thanks a lot, Lex," Nicola said sarcastically.

"What did you want to talk to Rickman about, anyway?" Lex asked curiously.

"His powers of persuasion. Well, since I can't talk to Rickman tonight, I might as well head home."

"Do you need a ride?"

"Nope, I have my Jeep, thanks though."

"Of course."

"Well, good night, Lex."

"Night."

Nicola was turned and was about to cross the street, when she remembered something, and turned back around.

"Hey Lex," she called out to him since he was walking in the other direction, back towards the Rickman Welcome Center, causing him to turn around.

"Yes?"

"You might want to get those eyes checked so you don't see things that aren't there again."

Lex smirked slightly then replied, "Noted."

At that, Nicola made her way to her Jeep across the street and then drove away. As each headed home, they both thought about how the other one was acting really strange, and wondered what was the cause their behavior.

That evening, Nicola found herself battling control of her thoughts. She kept trying to go over her theory about Bob Rickman having some sort of ability to control people, but for some reason her mind wanted to drift away from the subject before she got too far in her analyzing. For some reason, she also had the feeling a small chunk of her memory was missing, she just didn't know what. She couldn't explain how she knew, other than it was like that feeling you get when you walk into a room with a purpose- like you're looking for your keys- but you forget that you were looking for something as soon as you get there, and you're only left with the sense that you're missing something. She didn't have much chance to contemplate it very long because her thoughts were soon interrupted by her cell phone ringing.

She answered it to find Chloe on the other end.

"What's up, Chloe?"

"So, I spent some of the afternoon trying to find a connection between Tippet and Rickman."

"What did you find out?"

"Not much, just that they both worked as salesmen for the same agriculture equipment company. I'm thinking they used to be partners."

"That's all you got?"

"Yep. I would have gone to the library for more research, but it was too late. So I'm going to go to the library tomorrow morning to check their microfilm and various records to see if they had anything."

"And let me guess, you want me to go with you?"

"Yep, that's basically the gist of it."

"Well, I suppose I could give you some of my oh-so-valuable time."

"Great, can you pick me up at nine?"

"Of course. Night Chloe."

"Night."

The next day, Nicola picked Chloe up at nine, as planned. Their search at the library lasted only a few hours with their teamwork, and once they got all the information they needed, the two headed over to the Kent farm to report on their findings. When they got there, they found Clark moping in his loft about what could be a variety of things considering recent events.

"Hey Clark, what spun your world off its axis today?" Nicola asked him teasingly as she and Chloe walked up the loft stairs.

"I'm just thinking about last night," replied Clark.

"Last night?" repeated Chloe.

"Lana came over late last night. She heard about Tippet's escape from jail-"

"Wait, Tippet escaped from jail? Why haven't I heard about this?" asked Nicola.

"Because you live under a rock?" teased Chloe.

"Wait, you knew? Why didn't you tell me?"

"I thought you already knew."

"No, I didn't know."

"Sorry, next time there's a fugitive on the loose, I'll make sure to tell you."

"That's all I ask. Anyway, sorry Clark, continue."

"Well, we got into another argument when she was here and then she ended our friendship."

"I'm sure you're just overanalyzing it Clark."

"I agree with Chloe. I don't think she'd end your friendship over a couple of disagreements."

"She said, and I quote, 'I wanted to clear the air and preserve our friendship, but now I don't even know why I bothered.' That's pretty cut and dry, guys."

"I'm sure she didn't really mean it," insisted Nicola.

"Yeah, in a couple of days it'll all blow over."

"I'm not so sure. I think it may be over. Anyway," started Clark, choosing to change the subject. "What brings you two here, I know it's not to discuss my defunct friendship?"  
"We got that research on Kyle and Rickman," Chloe announced to Clark with a proud grin on her face.

"What did you find?" asked Clark. Chloe was about to answer, but Clark stopped her before she could. "Wait, let me call Lex, he should hear this too."

"Here, you can use my cell," said Chloe, pulling her phone out of her bag.

Clark called Lex and found that he was on his way to town from the LuthorCorp Plant. They agreed to meet at the Beanery in a few minutes to discuss Chloe's findings. Nicola drove her Jeep to town while Chloe and Clark rode in Clark's truck. Clark found a parking spot before Nicola did, and by the time she got to the Beanery, she unknowing just missed the exit of Bob Rickman. When she arrived at the table where her three friends sat, Chloe was already telling them what she discovered.

"Then the year after that, Rickman started his own company, and Kyle went Walden."

Nicola sat down quietly next to Lex, not interrupting their conversation since she already knew what Chloe was explaining.

"Wonder what happened."

"I don't know but I found this story in the Smallville Ledger."

"We," muttered Nicola. "We found the story."

No one seemed to hear her as Chloe handed the clipping over to Clark.

"_Salesmen trapped in car after meteor shower_," Clark read the headline aloud.

"I'm guessing whatever's going on started that sunny October day, twelve years ago," Chloe said.

"Let's go ask him," said Lex.

"Wait, you know where he is?"

Nicola saw Lex give Chloe a smirk, making her groan.

"Of course they know where he is," she said wryly, more to herself than anyone at the table. "Consider who we're talking to."

The foursome stood up from the table and then headed for their cars. Nicola followed Lex's light blue Porsche convertible and it wasn't very long into the drive when she realized they were driving towards Lex's estate. Once they got to the manor, the four walked to a second floor bedroom. When they entered the room, they found a woman in hospital scrubs sitting in a chair reading next to the unmade bed where Kyle had been asleep the night before.

"Where's Kyle?" Lex asked the woman.

"Who?" the nurse replied, obviously confused at his inquiry.

An audible sigh escaped Lex's mouth, showing his annoyance of the situation. Clark was silent for a moment as he thought of places where Kyle could have gone.

"I think I know where he went," said Clark, before turning to leave without another word.

Chloe and Nicola quickly followed Clark out of the bedroom and down the hallways of the Luthor Estate, whereas Lex opted to hang back. Clark and Chloe got back into his truck while Nicola hopped into her Jeep, and the two cars were soon on the road. Nicola followed Clark's truck until they came to stop on a dirt driveway. She noticed a trailer surrounded by some metal statues, which made her realize that they must've been at Kyle's home. As she climbed out of her car, she half-expected a police officer that should have been patrolling Kyle's trailer in case the wanted fugitive returned to his home to emerge and ask them what they were doing on the property. Instead, as the trio approached the silver trailer, the sight of Kyle stepping out of his trailer carrying a duffel bag greeted them.

Kyle noticed their approach, and began to walk in their direction.

"I appreciate the help, Clark, but I'm done here," Kyle told Clark, brushing past the three of them.

"We know that Rickman used to be your partner," Clark informed him.

"That was a million years ago," replied Kyle, not turning back.

He continued to walk toward the dirt drive that would lead to the main road, but stopped as Chloe spoke.

"What happened to you guys in that meteor shower? Trust me, you're not the only ones that were affected by it."

"She's right, you know," Nicola said, supporting Chloe's statement. "Read the paper and you'll probably find a story about someone who was affected emerging from the shadows."

"What's going on with you and Rickman?" Clark asked as he moved toward Kyle. "How did he get my dad to sell our farm?"

Kyle turned to Clark as he gave his answer.

"You know, until that day we were the worst salesmen to ever carry a catalog...and all that changed after they pulled us out of that car. With a single handshake we could get people to do whatever we wanted them to do. Buy a tractor. Stand on one leg."

"You saying you have the power of persuasion?" asked Clark.

"How long does it last?" Chloe inquired.

"Until the person does what I tell them to do. Could be two minutes, two hours, and then they come out of it without a memory."

"What happens if they can't do what you want?"

"They keep trying, unless they're forcibly snapped out of it like your friend, Whitney."

During the conversation, Nicola brows furrowed in a frown as a sense of déjà vu washed over her. There was something very familiar about what Kyle was explaining, she just wasn't sure what.

"Well, it sounds good in theory," started Chloe, breaking through Nicola's thoughts. "But, uh, how 'bout you prove it?"

"Chloe," chided Clark.

"What? The guy lives in a crappy trailer out in the woods. You'd think if he has this power he'd use it to sell some of these sculptures."

Even through her confusion of the familiarity of the situation, Nicola managed to laugh at her friend's wit.

"It's dangerous," warned Kyle.

"I'm used to living on the edge," retorted Chloe, earning a snort from Nicola.

Kyle extended his hand and Chloe took it. Then Kyle grasped her hand with both of his, as an unseen green glow surrounds his hands.

"You have feelings for Clark, don't you, Chloe?" Kyle said as held on to her hand, causing Clark to raise his eyebrows. "You see him, and you want him. All this time, you've been hiding it. Now you can show him."

Clark grinned at Kyle's words, obviously unconvinced by what he was saying. After Kyle finished talking, Chloe turned to Clark, ran her hands up his stomach and across his chest. Then she grabbed his coat and shirt and pulled him into a kiss. Clark struggled a little with wide eyes as Kyle and Nicola looked on. Chloe finally broke the kiss, and then turned back to Kyle as Clark stood by, stunned.

"Okay. Come on!" said Chloe. "I'm ready"

She noticed Clark and Kyle exchange a look. She turned to Clark to see him looking at her strangely.

"What? Why are you looking at me like that? And why is my mouth minty?"

"Let's just say he proved his point," replied Clark before wiping his mouth.

Chloe's eyes widen in horror as she realized what she just did.

"Oh...God, did I just?..."

"Don't worry. It was...fine," Clark said, trying to assure her.

Chloe put her hand to her head in shock, whilst Kyle picked up his bag from the ground. While the conversation continued between Clark and Kyle, behind Clark and Chloe, Nicola was crouching to the ground with her head in her hands unnoticed. The reason for her condition was due to Kyle proving his powers to them at the expense of Chloe. Somehow it had managed to trigger memories of the forgotten several minutes of her confrontation with Bob Rickman the night before that led to the grope-fest she didn't believe Lex about. She remembered how she lost control of her own mind and body and was forced to play tonsil hockey with a creep against her will. Half her attention was rested on Chloe and Clark as Clark feebly tried to assure the kiss was not bad by saying it was "fine" while the other half was digesting the fresh memories in her mind. She slowly backed away from the other three as she remembered each feeling, sensation, word, and touch that occurred the night before.

"Oh my God," Nicola gasped quietly as she crouched on the ground.

She felt like she was going to puke; she could still feel Rickman's roaming hands on her body. Nicola moaned quietly, and this time Chloe heard her. She turned around, and frowned at the sight of her friend on the ground. While Clark continued his lecture with Kyle about standing up to his responsibilities, Chloe moved to where her best friend was.

"Nicola? What's wrong?" Chloe asked as she crouched next to her friend, placing a hand on her back.

"I think I'm going to be sick," Nicola whimpered, more to herself than as an answer for Chloe.

"What happened?"

"I remember."

"You remember?" repeated Chloe.

"Rickman...last night."

"Nicola, you're not making any sense right now."

Nicola closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths to collect herself before she explained, "Kyle said that people come out of the mind control without a memory, right?"

"Yeah..."

"Well, I remember now."

"Remember what?"

"Rickman did the handshake mind control thing with me the other night, and I didn't remember any of it until just now."

"He what? What did he make you do?"

"Is it all right if I don't tell you right now?" Nicola asked with a slight shudder.

"Yeah, of course."

Nicola taking a few more deep breaths became seemingly calmer, and stood up as she saw Kyle and Clark approaching. At the sound of Clark's voice, Chloe followed suit.

"I'm going to get Kyle out of town before the police or Rickman get their hands on him."

"Okay," replied Chloe. "I'm going to make sure Nicola gets home. She said she wasn't feeling well."

"No, I'm fine. I want to go with you guys," insisted Nicola, not wanting her new discovery affect her.

"If you're not feeling well, I think Chloe's right, and you should go home."

"I said I'm fine."

"Still, I'd feel better if you two were out of harms way."

"Fine," she sighed, not wanting an argument.

The four headed for the two cars in a determined silence. As they got to Clark's truck, Nicola pulled her keys out.

"Hey, Chloe, do you think you could drive? I'm not really feeling up to it right now."

"No problem."

Nicola tossed her keys over to Chloe who continued to walk towards the Jeep.

"I just have to ask Tippet something first, okay?"

"Sure."

As Chloe got closer the Jeep, Nicola walked over to the driver's side of Clark's truck where Clark sat.

"Clark, come here really quick," she said through his open window, motioning for him to move his head closer to her as if she was going to whisper something in his ear. When he obliged, Nicola gave Clark a small smack on the side of his head.

"Ow, what was that for?" asked Clark as he rubbed his head.

"Clark, I don't care what a guy really thinks of the kiss...but never, ever are they to tell a girl that the kiss was "fine." That is like one of worse adjectives to use to describe anything. _How are you feeling? Fine. _You're never really fine when you tell someone you are fine. Thus, fine is not a good adjective."

"But you-"

"Yeah, I know I just said I was fine. And guess what? I'm not. You hear what I'm saying, now?"

"Loud and clear."

Nicola turned her head slightly to look at Tippet who seemed slightly amused by the exchange.

"Tippet," Nicola said his name to get his attention, which worked.

"You aren't going to hit me, too, are you?"

"No. I just have a question for you."

"Shoot."

"You said that the victims of your mind control come out it with no memories, right?"

"What are you getting at?"

"Well, what if someone does remember everything they did under your or Rickman's control?"

"Then it'd be a first."

"Oh...Yeah, that wasn't helpful at all. But thanks though."

"Sure."

"Well, be safe guys. And as soon as you get back into town, you better call or come to see me, Clark. I don't care how late it is, you know I'll be up."

"I will."

Nicola backed away from the truck then started to walk to her Jeep. As she got into the car, Clark drove by them, giving them a wave goodbye.

"Why did you smack Clark?" Chloe asked as Nicola closed her door.

"Because he can be really dense sometimes."

"That's true," laughed Chloe.

Chloe pulled the Jeep out of park and then followed Clark's truck out of the driveway. The drive towards town was spent in silence, with Nicola staring absently out of the window. She frowned, concerned with her friend's behavior.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"Not really. But I will anyway."

Nicola recounted the memories she just got back minutes before to Chloe as they got closer to town and told her how she had been having the feeling the night before and even today that there was something she was forgetting. The emotions that overcame Chloe ranged from anger towards Rickman to sadness for her friend, however, Nicola seemed unaffected by it as she narrated the incident. Chloe knew better, but did not press her on the matter. Nicola would handle it in her own way, and there was nothing Chloe could really do about it.

"Why do I remember it though? Tippet said that every person came out of the mind control without a memory. _Every _person. And the memory never came back. Why was mine only temporary?"

"It actually makes perfect sense," replied Chloe matter-of-factly.

"It does?"

"Think about it. You have the ability to access the 90 of the brain us earthlings are unable to use. It makes sense that you have the capability to retrieve lost memories."

Nicola mulled over what Chloe had just told her for a few brief seconds, and frowned, partially because that she hadn't thought of that herself, but also at the realization that even though her powers could be useful sometimes, there were other times when she wished she was just a normal teenager.

"I wish these ones had stayed lost."

"Isn't it better knowing? Wouldn't you rather know what had happened to you rather than being taken advantage of, never the wiser?"

"Well, at least with the not knowing my skin wouldn't crawl as I remember each detail."

Chloe frowned, sad for her friend once again. As they approached the downtown area, Chloe spotted an open parking spot in front of the Beanery, and an idea of how she could possible cheer her friend up, even if it was only slightly, presented itself.

"You know what you could use? A large double white mocha with extra whip and sprinkles on top, my treat."

Nicola smiled weakly at her friend, touched by Chloe's attempt to make her feel better. Despite how she was feeling inside past the impassive facade, she couldn't turn down that drink, especially if it was free. And Chloe was right; she really could use one right now.

"That does sound good," she admitted.

"Great."

Chloe pulled into the parking spot, then the two got out of the car and headed for the Beanery's entrance. As they sat in the Beanery drinking their espresso drinks, the two talked about everything but what happened to Nicola the night before. Chloe knew not to bring it up again, and that if Nicola wanted to talk about it some more, she would. A couple hours into the conversation, the topic had moved to Clark and Lana and the supposed end of their friendship. Nicola, as if to push her own troubles further to the back of her mind, decided it was her and Chloe's mission to set things right between their two brunette friends. So, after they had another refill, the two hopped back into the Jeep and made their way to Lana's house.

To say Lana was surprised to find Chloe and Nicola standing on her front porch that afternoon would be an understatement. This was the first time either went out of their way to visit with her, and she was curious as to what brought this on. She invited them into the house, and three girls moved into the living room where they took seats on the furniture in there.

"So, what brings you two here today?"

"We heard you pulled the plug on your friendship with Clark," replied Chloe.

"Oh. Did Clark send you over here for him?"  
"No. Actually, he would kill us if he knew we were over here talking to you about this," insisted Nicola.

"Look, we know Clark can be a lug head sometimes," started Chloe.

"And he sometimes says exactly the opposite of what you want to hear," continued Nicola.

"But his heart is always in the right place."

"And he will always be there for you in the long run, even if it doesn't always seem that way."

"We just think that your friendship with Clark is worth more than one argument."

"And you shouldn't throw it all away over your first disagreement," finished Nicola.

"Wow. You two didn't practice that, did you?"

"No," replied Nicola.

"Maybe a little," admitted Chloe. "But it was more like two minds thinking alike, than scripted work."

"Right."

"If you're still angry about the Kyle Tippet thing, I think you should know that there is more to the story then you aware of, like Clark said," began Nicola.

"He and Bob Rickman were affected by the meteorite rocks 12 years ago. They both got the ability to control people's minds."

"With the shake of the hand they could get people do whatever they wanted. But the person would come out of it without a memory."

"They used to be friends, but then Rickman got a little out of hand, wanting bigger and better things, so Tippet bowed out of the picture," further explained Chloe. "But then Rickman decided to bring a pesticide plant to Smallville, a place where Tippet threatened to reveal Rickman's secret powers to the world if he brought a plant here. So, since Tippet threatened to expose Rickman, Rickman decided it was time to get Kyle out of the picture permanently."

"That's why Whitney went to see Tippet that night- I saw Rickman talking to Whitney before that. He must have used his mind control to make Whitney go attack Kyle," Nicola told Lana.

"But before Whitney could do accomplish it, Clark forced him out of his task. Whitney came out of the mind control without a memory of it, that's why he didn't remember being at Tippet's place with intent to maim or kill."

Chloe and Nicola paused in their dialogue, waiting for a reaction from Lana. All of a sudden the brunette started laughing. Her giggles stopped when she realized that the expressions of her two friends were serious.

"You're serious?"

"I wasn't convinced either- until Tippet showed us his power."

"At Chloe's expense," added Nicola.

"What are you talking about?" asked Lana, slightly confused.

"He made me kiss Clark," Chloe explained through gritted teeth.

"You what?" Lana choked a laugh back.

"Well, technically, he made you "show Clark how you feel"- he never said it had to be a kiss."

"Shuddup," Chloe scowled at Nicola.

"How was it?" asked Lana, regarding the kiss.

"Minty?" replied Chloe. "I honestly _don't_ remember."

"It looked pretty good from where I was standing."

"What did Clark say?"

"He said it was 'fine'," grumbled Chloe.

"He didn't," gasped Lana.

"He did," affirmed Nicola. "And I made sure he knew how idiotic he was for saying that."

"I didn't do anything else embarrassing, did I?" asked Chloe, since they were on the topic, and she wanted to know.

"Not exactly," semi-lied Nicola.

"What? What did I do?"

"It wasn't really a separate embarrassing thing, more like part of the same thing."

"Just tell me."

"I think it'd be easier if I show you."

Nicola stood up the couch and then mimicked what Chloe did to Clark to an imaginary victim. Chloe cringed as she realized that she had run her hands up Clark's chest before pulling him into a lip lock. Lana chuckled lightly at Nicola's reenactment, wishing she had been there to see it.

"If it's any consolation, at least you don't remember it," Nicola said to Chloe, somewhat bitterly.

"It is, but not much, because I still know _what_ I did."

Silence briefly filled the room, before Nicola turned to face Lana.

"So, do you believe us?"

"Well, it does sound a little too outlandish for anyone to make up."

"Exactly," agreed Chloe.

"But regardless of the Kyle situation, I think you two are right about my friendship with Clark."

"We are?" said Chloe, surprised Lana was so quick to agree with them. "Of course we are."

"Well, I never doubted us for a second," joked Nicola.

"So, now that you two have completed your mission, what are you up to now?"

"Nothing really, why?"

"Well, before you two got here, I was getting a little antsy, so I thought maybe we could do something," explained Lana.

"The Beanery's definitely out," said Nicola, agreeing to the excursion to get her mind off other thoughts. "I've spent way too much time there in the last couple of days."

"I'm right there with you," agreed Chloe.

"Then what do you suggest?"

Nicola pondered the possibilities for a few minutes before an idea sprung into her head, and a pleased grin spread across her face.

"What do you two think about a night on the town in Metropolis?"

"I think that's a long drive for a short night on the town," commented Chloe.

"Oh come on. It's just after five, right? I can get us to Metropolis in like two hours, which means we'll be there at seven. We can stay there till eleven and be back by one. What do you think?"

"I think, you're crazy," said Lana.

"Oh, come on Lana. I thought you knew how to let loose?" Nicola mocked the words she had used on Thursday when they went horseback riding.

"Great, she's using my own words against me."

"Come on, guys. Think of it as eight hours away from dumb boys and small town angst- just the girls. It'll be fun, I promise."

Lana and Chloe exchanged looks, both deciding whether or not to agree to their friend's insane idea.

"Fine, I'll go," said Lana. "Let me just call my Aunt at the flower shop and see if I can go."

Lana got up and moved to the nearby telephone to make the call while Nicola glanced at Chloe expectantly. Chloe, knowing Nicola was using this as an opportunity to avoid thinking about less pleasant things, gave into her friend's request.

"Okay, I'm in. But I need to call my dad to see if it's okay."

Nicola threw her arms around Chloe, practically squealing.

"Thank you, Chloe. I swear you won't regret it."

"Yeah, yeah."

Once Nicola let go of her, Chloe pulled out her cell phone to call her dad. Nicola followed suit so she could call her own parental unit. After a near five-minute lecture on driving safely, Nicola managed to get her mom to agree to her last minute outing. By the time she was finished with her mom, Chloe and Lana had already gotten off the phone with their authority figures and were waiting expectantly.

"You guys all set?"

"Yep."

"Nell gave the green light."

"Great. Now let's get Lana into some different clothes, then we'll go to my house so I can change, and then we can leave for Metropolis."

"Hey! What's wrong with my outfit?"  
"Nothing, really. It's just that jeans and a pink cardigan might cut for a night on the town in Smallville, but for Metropolis, unless you're going bowling, that's not really a "night on the town" outfit. You need something a little more...edgy."

"Edgy?" repeated Lana, trying not to laugh.

"Yes. Chloe, please tell Lana that I'm right."

"She's right," admitted Chloe. "Crazy, but right."

"Fine, I guess I'll change my outfit."

"Great. Now let's peruse your closet for something more suitable."

Lana led them to her room and once they were in the room, Nicola and Chloe searched the closet for a decent outfit. The two raised their eyebrows on the amount of pink this girl owned, but tried not to laugh about it. Unfortunately, nothing really screamed "night on the town" to neither Chloe nor Nicola. After a few minutes, something at the bottom of the closet in a corner caught one of their eyes.

"Lana Lang, where did you get these?" Chloe asked as she held up a pair of knee-high black leather boots. "And why have I never seen you in them?"

Lana walked over and grabbed hold of the boots.

"Nell got them for me when we went to Metropolis for shopping a while ago. I haven't built the courage up to wear them yet."

"Let me guess, these fit into the same category?" Nicola asked, grabbing the two freshmen girls' attention. They saw Nicola was holding up a few tops, a couple of skirts, and a couple of pants that still had their tags on them.

"Yep."

"Well, it looks like we've found your outfit."

Nicola tossed the clothes on the bed and mulled over the possible combinations for a few moments. It didn't take long before she figured out which outfit she wanted Lana to wear.

"Do you have a warm coat, cuz otherwise, you might get a little chilly?" Nicola asked as she held out the outfit of choice. "And wear the boots, too. Chloe and I will be waiting downstairs for you."

Without another word, Nicola walked out of the room tentatively followed by Chloe. Once they were bounding down the stairs, Chloe, who was rarely patient and always curious, began inquire about the clothes Nicola had chosen for their friend.

"What outfit did you pick for her?" asked Chloe. "I didn't get a look at it since you were so quick to get us out of there."

"Something you might never see Lana wearing ever again. It was pretty un-Lana-like."

"So what you're telling me is that no where in her outfit will there be the color pink?"

"Exactly," laughed Nicola.

The two walked back into the living room as they waited for Lana to change into her outfit.

"Are you sure you're up for a night in Metropolis?" asked Chloe, still concerned with her best friend's well being.

"It's exactly what I need. I just don't want to think about _anything_ tonight. And if it takes a night in Metropolis to do it, that's what I'm going to do."

Before Chloe could respond to that, Lana was back downstairs and she announced her arrival in the living room.

"So, whaddaya think?"

Chloe and Nicola turned to find Lana wearing the new outfit, each having a different expression on their face. Chloe was agape in shock at the fact that Lana was actually wearing the clothes she was. Nicola however was grinning in approval at the outcome. Along with the knee-high black leather boots, Lana was also sporting a black miniskirt that had a wide belt with a big buckle and a deep red, one-sleeved tank top. Finishing off the look was a long, black peacoat jacket.

"Wow, looking hot, Lana," catcalled Nicola.

"Really? I don't know, I feel kind of...unsure in this outfit."

"I agree with Nicola; you look great," agreed Chloe.

"Thanks, guys."

"Well, now that you're ready, grab your purse then we can get out of here," ordered Nicola.

The three girls quickly exited the house, and were soon piling into Nicola's Jeep. The drive to Nicola's house didn't take long, and Nicola had Chloe and Lana wait in the car as she slipped down the back stairs to her room in the basement. As she entered her room, she pulled her cell phone out of her purse and started to dial a familiar number she hadn't called in a while. By the time she was going through her closet for what to wear that night, the person answered their phone.

"Guess who?" Nicola sang into the phone.

"Cola? Damn girl, I've been starting to think you forgot my number again. You haven't called in weeks."

"I know, sorry. I've just been really busy with school and shit, sorry."

"Not a problem. So what can I do for the elusive?"

"Well, I'm coming to Metropolis for the evening with a couple of my friends, and I thought that maybe your band was performing somewhere and we could check it out."

"Well, as a matter of fact, you're in luck. We're playing at the Veruca Room tonight at ten."

"Sweet, that's perfect. Is the whole gang going to be there?"

"Pretty sure."

"Awesome."

"I'll pull some strings to make sure you and your friends get on the VIP guest list."

"You're amazing. Thanks, Trask."

"Anything for you."

"See ya."

After she hung up her cell, she tossed it onto her bed before she quickly grabbed the clothes from her closet she had decided on as she talked to her old friend. She quickly pulled on a light purple halter-top over her head, and then slipped on black skirt that went to mid thigh and was frilly at the bottom. She glanced in the mirror and noticed that the bruise and the scratches still visibly marred her face. Not wanting to deal with the questions from her Metropolis friends, but willing to put up with the questions from Lana if they arrived, Nicola ran and hand over the bruises on her face and healed both. If Lana did ask, she'd chalk it up to good cover-up. Satisfied with the result, she moved to put on her pair of black heels, grabbed her pinkish, knee-length tweed jacket and her purse then hurried back out the door to go to her car.

It was nearing six o'clock by the time the trio got onto the highway headed for their destination. Most of the drive up to Metropolis was occupied by the sounds of the stereo blaring through the car. However, as they neared their destination, the three decided to discuss their plans for the evening.

"So, I was thinking that maybe we could drop in this one place to see my friend's band play a couple of songs, what do you guys think?"  
"What kind of band are they?" asked Chloe.

"There kind of have this emo/alt rock feel to them. Think Dashboard Confessional."

"Sounds cool. Where they playing?"

"The Veruca Room."

"The Veruca Room?" repeated Chloe. "Isn't that an 18 and older club?"  
"Kind of. They made it a sixteen and older club last year because the other clubs in the area were stealing most of their 18 plus business anyway. But there's a second level of the club where those eighteen and older can go to mingle and for the twenty-one year-olds and older to drink."

"Okay, I'm in."

"How about you Lana?"

"Fine with me."

"Great. Well, their set starts at ten and it's almost 8:20, so we have some time to kill before then."

"Well, I'm kind of hungry, so maybe we could get something to eat first?" suggested Chloe.

"Sure, anywhere in particular?"  
"I was thinking of getting a Coney Island Hotdog from Nick's."

"Mmm, that does sound good...that and one of their cheeseburgers. Those are so effin' good."

"Who's Nick?" asked Lana.

"Lana, Lana, Lana," chided Nicola. "Smallville life has seriously deprived you from excellent food, wouldn't you agree Chloe?"  
"I concur."

"Nick's isn't a person. It's a restaurant whose owner is a complete sports buff, which is evident in the décor. And they have the best chili dogs and burgers in the world, at least in my humble opinion."

"Oh. I've never had a chili dog before."

"Please tell me you're joking," said Chloe. Her eyes widened slightly in amazement when she realized Lana was serious. "You're not joking."

"It's not exactly on Nell Potter's list of choice cuisine."

"Well that, my dear, must be remedied."

The car was promptly on route to their destination on the southeast side of the city. The restaurant was busy when they arrived, but there happened to be a booth open when they got there, so the three quickly slipped into the booth before any one else could grab it. It took several minutes until one of the few employees who worked there came to their table to take their order. Nicola ordered both a Coney Island Dog and a regular cheeseburger, while Chloe took the liberty of ordering for both herself and Lana, both getting Coney Island Dogs.

After their food came to their table, Nicola pulled out a small bottle of Tabasco sauce from her purse and started splashing it onto her food. She felt her two friends staring at her from across the booth, and she glanced up to find them giving her a puzzled look.

"What?"

"Do you always carry a bottle of Tabasco in your purse?" inquired Lana.

"Uh, no. I leave one in my car. You know, just in case."

"Cause you never know when a bottle of Tabasco sauce will come in handy," Chloe said sarcastically.

Nicola shot Chloe a dirty look.

"Just eat your food," commanded Nicola.

The three ceased talking momentarily so they could concentrate on the food before them. Chloe and Nicola heard a stifled moan come from Lana as she took a bite of her Coney Island Dog, and both smirked with satisfaction at Lana's apparent enjoyment of the food.

"Oh my God," Lana said, after she took several bites. "This is really good."

"Told ya," gloated Chloe.

"See Lana, you should never distrust us. We are wiser than we appear."

"I'll remember that."

The rest of the meal was spent in basic silence since their mouths were full for most of time. Once Nicola was finished with her cheeseburger, they paid for their food then headed out back to Nicola's Jeep.

"So, we have about another hour to kill until the show starts. Any ideas?" Nicola asked as the three got into the car.

"I have one," said Lana. "But you have to swear you won't laugh."

"That doesn't sound very promising, Lana," retorted Chloe.

"I'm going to have to agree with our blonde friend here."

"It's not that bad," Lana assured them. "It's just, some people have an aversion to it."

Chloe thought over what Lana could be talking about, when a guess popped into her head.

"Please tell me you weren't thinking about going to a karaoke bar," pleaded Chloe.

Lana's eyes grew at Chloe's guess, and she gave a week smile as she replied, "Okay, I won't."

"Karaoke, Lana? Are you serious? I don't karaoke."

"Oh, come on, Chloe, it might be fun," said Nicola.

"Please, Chloe, just give it a chance."

"Fine, I'll go. Just don't expect me to participate."

"We wouldn't dream of it," assured Nicola.

"Thanks, Chloe. It'll be fun, I promise."

Chloe snorted at the possibility that listening to a bunch of delusional people who think they're the next Britney Spears or Justin Timberlake singing off key could ever be fun, but said nothing.

Nicola knew of a karaoke bar not too far from the club they were planning on going to later that night. When they arrived at the karaoke bar, they found it wasn't very crowded, something Chloe was glad for. Less people meant less god-awful singing. They found a table and then Nicola and Lana started to look through the menu of songs they could chose from. Once they each found a song they liked, they pleaded to Chloe to pick one for herself, but Chloe wouldn't budge on her anti-karaoke position, so the two left Chloe and went to sign up for mic time. About 10 minutes later, Lana was called up to do her number.

"Pasty Cline's _Crazy_?" Chloe mocked Lana's choice after she heard the MC announce what song Lana was singing as the brunette made her way to the stage. "Seriously?"

"It is one of the most popular- and butchered- female karaoke songs, along with Aretha Franklin's _Respect_ and Gloria Gainer's _I Will Survive_," replied Nicola, matter-of-factly.

"Let's just hope Lana won't add to the slaughter of the song."

The two stopped talking as soon as the music started to cue up, both putting on serious faces for the performance. Unfortunately, once Lana started to deliver a slightly pitchy rendition of the vocals, Chloe and Nicola found themselves struggling to maintain the straight faces. They managed to pass off their amused smiles as encouraging ones when Lana glanced at them a few times. Once Lana was finished with her song, she walked back to the table with a giant grin on her face. Chloe and Nicola forced grins of their own to emerge on their faces.

"Well? What did you think?" Lana asked when she got to the their table.

"It was fabulous," Nicola drawled, embellishing the truth...a lot. "I only hope to be half that good when I'm up there."

"I'm sure you'll do fine."

Nicola stood up when the MC called her name.

"If you guys laugh, I _will_ hurt you," Nicola warned them before she made her way to the stage.

Chloe perked with interest as she heard that the song Nicola was about to sing was the Fiona Apple's _Criminal_, as it seemed like an uncommon karaoke choice. Her eyebrows rose as the surprisingly sultry and good singing voice of her friend filled the room. What Chloe wasn't sure of was whether it was actually Nicola's singing voice or if she was using her ability to alter vocal chords to sound good. If there was one thing she could say about Nicola's performance it was that she could engage her audience, which was more than she could say about Lana's earlier titillating number. Once Nicola was done, Chloe stood up along with a few other karaoke-goers to applaud her performance. Nicola gave a wave of thanks to the audience before quickly vacating the stage to get back to her two friends.

"Where have you been hiding those pipes of yours, girly?" Chloe inquired as Nicola casually slipped back into her seat at the table.

Nicola shrugged her shoulders. "I tend to reserve my singing for my bedroom, the shower, and my car. Basically where no one else will hear me."

"I think with a voice like that, you should be more public about it," commented Lana.

"I don't do anything that would bring extra attention upon me. I'm not one for standing out."

"Well, I think that you, Nicola Lively, were born to stand out. Why else would you be blessed with such a terrific voice?"

"It's luck, Lana, not divine intervention. I just happened to develop a decent singing voice, doesn't mean I'm supposed to do anything with it."

"You believe what you want, but I'm going to have to disagree with you. Chloe, tell her she shouldn't hide her gift."

"Hey, don't put me in the middle."

"Fine," sighed Lana. "I'm going to use the restroom. I'll be back."

Once Lana was several feet away, Chloe leaned closer to Nicola.

"Okay, blame it on the reporter in me, but I have to ask-" started Chloe, waiting for an approval from Nicola to continue, which she received with an expectant nod. "How much of that performance was natural talent, and how much of it was because you have the ability to alter vocal chords."

"Screw you, Sullivan," Nicola jokingly spat. "I'll have you know that all I do is open my mouth, and the voice comes out. Any vocal chord altering wouldn't be of my volition."

"Okay, sorry, I just was curious."

"I know, and I won't hold it against you. As long as you don't conspire with Lana to make me the next American Idol, we're cool."

"You won't have to worry about that."

Nicola glanced at her watch and realized that it was almost time for her friends' show to start. When Lana got back from the ladies' room, the three decided to head over to the club. The line outside the club wasn't too long, and after a several minute wait, they were inside. The band was setting up on stage still even though it was five minutes after ten. Nicola spotted a few of her Metropolis friends nearby the stage, and then she, Chloe, and Lana walked over to where they stood. When she saw the back of her ex-boyfriend Brian's head, a grin spread across her face, but as she neared the small group, she noticed that his arm was latched around the waist of some blonde girl, causing her smile to waver. One of her other friends spotted her, and called her name as he waved, which made Brian turn to face her.

"Hey guys, how's it going?" Nicola greeted them once she joined them.

"Nicola? I didn't know you were coming here tonight," Brian said as his hand quickly de-latched from the waist of the girl.

"It was kind of a spur of the moment decision. I called Trask earlier to see if anything was happening tonight and he told me about his band's gig," Nicola explained. "He didn't tell you I was coming?"

"He failed to mention that before he left tonight."

"I'd be lying if I said I was surprised he forgot to mention it. Anyway, I dragged my two best gal pals from Smallville for a night on the town. You remember Chloe, right?"

"Yeah, how you doing?" Brian greeted Chloe.

"Great."

"And this is Lana. Chloe and Lana, this is Brian, Griffin, Georgia, Oliver, Will, Hailey, Jackson, and..." Nicola paused, not knowing what Brian's female companion's name was. 'Sorry, I don't think we've met before."

"Oh, sorry. Nicola this is Heidi," Brian introduced the two girls to each other.

"Hello, Heidi, nice to meet you," Nicola forced herself to say with a not completely sincere grin on her face. Heidi returned Nicola's grin with a slightly icy glare. There was a pregnant pause before Nicola realized she wasn't going to get any kind of greeting from the girl. "So, how long have you two been going out?"

"Oh, we're not real-"

"Almost three weeks," Heidi interrupted Brian. "He was reluctant at first, since his last girlfriend ripped his heart to shreds making him wary of starting any new relationships."

"You have absolutely no clue what you're talking about, so why don't you shut the hell up before you find your foot so far down your throat it's coming out of your ass," threatened Nicola, pissed off at the audacity of this girl who didn't even know her.

The group was visibly uncomfortable regarding the exchange, especially Brian. Most of them were expecting Nicola to suddenly beat Heidi senseless for such a tactless comment, but Nicola managed to stay calm despite the words she spat out at the blonde. She instead turned to Chloe and Lana, telling them she'd be right back, then quickly walked towards the staircase that would lead to the second level of the club. As she made her way to the stairs, she pulled her wallet out of her purse so she could grab the fake ID she'd had since she was a freshman at Metropolis High. No one ID'd her when she went past the security that stood at the bottom of the staircase, but she was ID'd when she asked the bartender for a scotch on the rocks.

"When did you start drinking scotch?" she heard someone ask from behind her as she quickly downed the drink. She didn't have to turn around to know it was Brian.

"End of last year. It's Lex's poison of choice."

"Ah."

"If you're here to get me apologize to her, you can forget it, even if she's your girlfriend."

"She's not my girlfriend. And no, I'm not here to get you to apologize. I'm here to apologize for her. She was completely out of line."

"Whatever, it doesn't matter. I know Heidi's type; cut down others to make themselves feel superior. So, how come you've never mentioned her in any of our calls or emails over the weeks?"

"It's not exactly an easy subject to broach with your ex. Besides, I'm not even sure we're going anywhere."

"You know what, you don't have to explain. I shouldn't have even asked."

"So, are we okay?"

"We were never not okay...however, if you continue to go out with Heidi Ho-bag, that might be subject to change," she joked.

"Well, I better get back down there before Heidi gets seriously pissy. She may be a newly discovered callous bitch, but she is my date for the evening."

"No need to explain, I completely understand."

Brian started to walk away from the bar, but suddenly stopped to turn to face her once again.

"You not coming?"

"I'll be down in a sec. I just need a few more minutes to...rejuvenate."

"Alright. See you down there."

Nicola gave Brian a wry smile before he turned back around to walk down to the main floor. Once he was out of sight, she spun back towards the bar to wave the bartender over. She ordered a couple of Kamikazes then quickly tossed them back. She wished she could use the alcohol to numb any of the many thoughts and feelings that had accumulated over the weeks, but unfortunately, due to her alien metabolism or whatever, it would take way more than the average amount of booze to get her piss drunk, and she sure as hell wasn't going to waste the time or the money to accomplish that. So, she'd just have to make due with a slight buzz. As she heard a familiar song of Trask's band begin to play, Nicola ordered a strawberry daiquiri to finish off her round of drinking with.

She tossed a few bills onto the counter, deciding it was time to head back down to join her friends. Drink in hand, she moved for the stairs and quickly made her way back to her small group of friends. When she rejoined the group, she was greeted with concerned glances. She gave them a reassuring smile and concentrated on the band a few feet away from them.

"You okay, there?" Chloe asked Nicola as she moved to stand next to her friend.

"Peachy," returned Nicola sarcastically before taking another sip of her drink.

"Is that drink of the virgin variety, by chance, because I'm not really in the mood to drive for two and half hours, so it better be?"

"Actually, it's of the alcohol variety."

"You sure that's wise? I saw the episode of Roswell where Max got plastered, and that wasn't pretty."

"Now that was a misrepresentation of our tolerance of alcohol. It takes a hell of a lot more than a sip to do anything to us."

"Well, that's good to know, I guess. Otherwise, I would have been very worried for you."

"Thank you for the concern, but all this drink will do for me is give me a twenty-minute buzz. Don't worry, this will be my last drink for the evening and by the time we need to start heading home, my alien metabolism will have completely diluted the alcohol."

"Nice. Well, since you're still driving, mind if I have a sip of it?"

"Not at all. Always willing to share."

Nicola handed her drink to Chloe, and turned back to the stage to enjoy her friends' performance. Fortunately, Trask's band's performance was an easy distraction for Nicola, and her only concern was making sure she was properly dancing along to the music. After the band was done, the band joined Nicola and all of her friends before they all headed for some tables at the back of the club. Well, all of them except for Heidi and Brian. Heidi had pouted throughout most of the band's show, and when they had finished up she had convinced Brian to leave the club. Once they got to the seats, Nicola introduced Chloe and Lana to Trask and his bandmates. Nicola noticed the almost-leering smile Trask threw at Chloe during the introduction, and smirked in amusement.

"You didn't mention that your friend was so hot, Cola," Trask leaned over as if to say it just to her, but it was loud enough for both Lana and Chloe who sat on her other side heard him.

One side of Nicola's mouth curled up in a smirk as she turned to see her friends' reactions, and found one of them blushing slightly while the other rolled her eyes slightly.

"Thanks," Lana replied presumptuously, which caused Chloe to roll her eyes again.

"Actually, I was referring to Chloe," Trask reiterated, flashing the blonde a grin.

Nicola barely held back a snort of laughter as she saw Lana's ego deflate and Chloe's eyes widen in surprise. Living in Smallville where the boys her age preferred to moon over Lana rather than give her a second glance, Chloe was not used to being the girl someone was lusting over.

"Trask, please keep it in the pants," joked Nicola, causing the table to laugh. "And if you're going to flirt, I would appreciate if I wasn't between you and your victim- I mean, lady of interest."

"Har-har," replied Trask dryly. He ignored her request, and instead leaned over Nicola. "So, Chloe, you have a boyfriend?"

"Okay, this is the part where I switch seats with someone. You mind, Chloe?"

Nicola stood up from her seat and looked expectantly down at her. Chloe, shot Nicola a pleading look, but when she realized Nicola wasn't backing down, she reluctantly exchanged seats.

"So, what did you think of Trask?" Nicola asked Chloe as they were driving back to Smallville later that evening.

"He was...interesting."  
"Yeah, he's a character. But that's what I love about him. I think he has a crush on you now."

"Oh, I don't think so."

"Yeah, he does. I haven't seen him flirt so hard since...well, never."

"Shut up, you're so full of it."

"I'm serious. Yeah, he's a flirt, but I've never seen him lay it on so thick before."

"Oh, come on, you are so full of it."

"Chloe, when are you going to realize that you are gorgeous and once you get out this Podunk town where a certain brunette female we both know doesn't have some kind of hypnotic hold on the male population, guys will be fighting each other for a chance with you?"

"Okay, now you're just being delusional. And, you do realize Lana's in the backseat right?" Chloe said, lowering her voice so only Nicola could hear her.

"Please, she's been passed out in the backseat for the last half-hour. Can't you hear the low hum of her snoring?"

"You are so wrong," replied Chloe, but she still chucked in spite of herself.

"But that is what you love about me," retorted Nicola. "Seriously though, I think you should give Trask a try. He's a really great guy."

"I don't see you dating him."

"That's because that would be like dating my brother."

"Why are you pushing this match-up so hard?"

"Because you deserve to have a guy in your life who will appreciate the greatness that is Chloe Sullivan instead of pining over the one who doesn't deserve you."

"I don't pine."

"Fine, not pine, lust over, whatever. Look, all I'm saying is that even though I think Clark is a wonderful guy, if he can't see the awesomeness you possess, he isn't the wonderful guy for you."

"I could say the same thing about Lex and you, except for the wonderful part."

"Great, you turn my own words against me. Brilliantly done, Miss Sullivan."

"Why thank you, Miss Lively."

"But it's not going to throw me off track."

"Damn."

"Answer this honestly: When's the last time you went on a date, or for that matter, when's the last time you even considered going on a date?"

"I don't know..."

"Yes you do. Chloe, you can't let one bad experience deter you from the dating scene."

"I can't go near a pool without nearly hyperventilating, let alone am at a point where I can trust a guy not to try to literally suck the life out of me."

"That's why you date someone outside this town. Meteor rocks combined with a small gene pool does kind of lower the chances of a sane date, you know what I mean?"

"You can say that again."

"Promise you'll at the very least consider going out with Trask."

"Fine, I'll consider it, but I can't make any guarantees."

"Beautiful."

Satisfied with the results, Nicola decided to drop the conversation. For the rest of the drive home, the only sounds that filled the car were from the car's stereo system. After Nicola dropped Chloe then Lana off at their respective homes, she aimlessly steered her car across Smallville and when her car finally came to a stop, she found herself stopped in a familiar driveway and paused for a moment, contemplating what brought her to this destination. As she sat in the silent car, Nicola realized that this was the first moment of real solidarity she had since that morning, and slowly all the thoughts she had been trying to block out of her mind all afternoon came rushing back full force. She took a deep breath as she tried to continue pushing the memories into the back recesses of her mind, and she was about to start the car, all of the feelings she'd been attempting to suppress hit her like a Mack truck. A cry escaped her mouth, and she leaned forward her rested her head on her hands that clutched the steering wheel. Before she could stop herself, tears began to stream down her face and her body racked in sobs. For several minutes she sat in her car, the memories that flooded her mind causing her to once again relive every minute, every sensation that passed between she and Rickman. She didn't notice the dark figure approach the car, and was not aware anyone was nearby until a tap on her Jeep's window startled her out of her near-breakdown.

She lifted her head from its resting place, then opened her eyes and through blurry vision, she turned her head to gaze out the window to find the outline of a familiar male standing next to her car.

"Lex?" she choked out as she blinked tears away to focus on the figure outside her car. She took the interruption as time to slowly calm herself, and inhaled several deep breaths before she hesitantly unlocked her door so Lex could open it.

"A little late for a visit, wouldn't you say?" Lex quipped with a smirk. The smirk faltered however as he saw the fresh tears that laid on her cheeks that Nicola was trying to brush away with the back of her hand. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she lied, then tried to divert the topic. "How did you know I was here?"

"I couldn't sleep and the guard at the front gate informed me of your arrival. What brings you here in the middle of the night?"

"I don't know. I dropped Chloe and Lana off from our trip to Metropolis and then found myself here."

"Well, since you're here, why don't you coming inside? It's freezing out here."

"Actually, I probably should head home, I wouldn't want to disturb Victoria's beauty sleep."

"It's hard to disturb someone that three hours away," he replied. At Nicola's puzzled frown he added, "She decided to go to Metropolis for the weekend."

"Oh. Well, I should still probably go."

"Just come in for a minute. Maybe you can explain to me why you were crying in my driveway in the middle of the night."

Nicola mulled over the invitation for a few seconds before grabbed the keys from the ignition and her purse from the floor of the passenger.

"I guess a few minutes won't kill me," she said.

She swung her body around to exit the car and saw Lex held out one of his hands to help her out of the car. She grasped his hand and stepped out of the car. Lex's hand found its way to the middle of her back as he lead her towards the back entrance of the manor. As they walked towards the manor, Nicola noticed that there was a slight stiffness in Lex's movements.

"What happened to you?"

"I'm not quite sure."

"Well that's not an evasive answer," she teased him.

"I'm not being evasive. I can only base my answer on the assumption that what Clark informed me happened is the truth."

"Okay, you lost me at 'evasive.' Wanna explain to me what you're talking about?"

"You were with Clark when he found out about the powers Tippet and Rickman got from the meteor shower, right?'"

"Yeah."

"Well, Rickman visited me earlier this evening and put the whammy on me. Then Clark called me to meet him and Tippet, and apparently when I went to get them I tried to set the car they were in on fire. I apparently was on the warpath to kill Tippet; however, before I could get a chance to get my hands on him, Clark pushed me into some shelves, which therein jerked me out of hypnotic state."

"Hence the stiffness."

"Exactly."

Nicola was quiet for a moment as she processed the new information while they entered the entrance that led to the kitchen, and Lex frowned slightly at her silence. He contemplated how to ask her what was on her mind, but before he found the words, they were already at the door to the library/Lex's office and Nicola had decided to beat him to the punch.

"What do you remember?" she asked, her voice cutting through the deafening silence filled the hall and caught Lex by surprise.

"I remember Rickman barging into my office in my manor uninvited and then the next thing I know I'm lying on a pile of car service supplies. Why the inquiry?" Lex asked as he ushered her into the library.

Nicola fell silent once again as she mulled over how to put the words together that would best explain the reason for her question while at the same tried to build the courage to make an admission she would rather forget. Lex gestured for her to take a seat on of the plush leather couches that sat in front of the fireplace as he moved to it to light a fire.

"The short version?" Nicola said finally as Lex finished getting the fire started. "I was put under Rickman's spell, but as of this afternoon, I remember what I did."

Lex turned to face her quickly and frowned in slight confusion as he tried to process what she was telling her.

"I'm sorry I didn't believe you last night," Nicola continued before he could respond to her admission. Instead of looking at him while she spoke, Lex noticed she was staring at her hands that sat in her lap. "I honestly did not remember seeing Rickman, let alone remember allowing him to stick his tongue down my throat, and truthfully I wish I still didn't."

Lex saw a slight shudder sweep over Nicola as she said this, as the memories flittered across her mind, and she unconsciously wrapped her arms around herself.

"Are you telling me that Rickman used his meteorite power to freely feel you up?" Lex asked, his jaw tensing ever so slightly

"Unfortunately, yes."

Nicola finally managed to pull her eyes away from her lap, and looked expectantly up at Lex and noticed his facial features darken along with his aura.

"If Rickman wasn't dead already, I'd kill the son of a bitch myself," Lex said to himself almost inaudibly, but Nicola still heard him and stiffened slightly at the news of Rickman's untimely demise.

"Rickman's dead? How? When?"

"He died at his own hands earlier tonight, although I have the feeling that Tippet might have had a little to do with that."

"As heartless as it may sound, I'm kind of glad. I saw the things he did with his powers, and they were far worse than just groping high school girls."

"I can only imagine. Wait, what do mean by you 'saw' the things he did?"

Nicola's eyes widened as she realized her slip of admission, but she quickly covered her tracks.

"When Rickman used his powers to manipulate my mind, I guess I must have connected with his mind or something because when I got my memory back, I remembered images I received from him in regard to other victims of his. Rickman felt no remorse or guilt for any of the wrongs he committed against his victims. He was calculating and malevolent, and the world is a much better place with one less atrocious man like him."

"You've got no argument from me on that point."

A quiet washed over the two and a dead silence slowly crept across the library. The two were still for a moment, waiting for the other to make the next move.

"How much of it do you exactly remember?" Lex asked finally, breaking the silence.

"All of it- from the moment I walked into the Welcome Center to when you swooped in and thankfully dragged me away from that skeeve."

"What on earth were you thinking confronting Rickman, on your own no less?" Lex chided her.

Nicola crossed her arms and glared up at Lex who was staring down at her with disapproval.

"I was thinking about how he was ruining one of my friend's lives and got another to almost run me down. I was thinking about trying to stop him from giving other people the handshake of death."

"Are you telling me you knew going in there that if he shook your hand he could persuade you to do anything he wanted?"

"No, I didn't know. I only suspected."

"Yet regardless of this fact you still let him shake your hand, why?"

"Because I thought I had a stronger willpower than that."

"Well, obviously you didn't."

"Actually, considering the fact I'm the only victim of Rickman's or Tippet's to have ever regained the memories of what happened, I think I do, jackass," she retorted.

"That is beside the point."

"Really, then enlighten me, what is the point?"

"The point is that you disregarded any thought of rationale and allowed yourself to be in a dangerous situation. Your actions were reckless and cavalier. God only knows what would have happened had I not been come out of the Beanery the moment I did."

"What would have happened was we would have gone to the Beanery to make a show in front of you there. The only reason Rickman did what he did to me was to get to you. The groping was just an added bonus."

Lex fell silent at this new piece of information that was presented. Nicola snatched her purse from next to her feet and quickly stood up.

"Coming here was obviously a mistake. I don't know what the hell I was thinking. Have a good night, Lex."

She turned her heel and moved to the door in a fast pace. She was out the door before he was able to stop her, and by the time he reached the door himself, he found no sign of her in the hallway. Nicola had forced herself not to sprint as she exited the library, but still kept a quick pace as she walked back towards the kitchen. Once she was inside her car, she forcefully shut her car door. As soon as the door was shut, Nicola released her frustration as she let out a loud and long scream. When she was done, it felt like a little of the weight that was boggling her down was lifted. Now that some of the tension was released, she started up her car and then peeled out of the driveway.

Once home, she slipped discreetly inside from the door that led to her room in the basement, so she wouldn't have to deal with her mom's line of questioning. She swiftly changed out of her clothes, and as she was slipping into her pajamas, a yawn escaped her mouth, making Nicola realize how tired she was. She moved to hop into her bed, and when she landed on the mattress, she found she had landed on top of something small and hard. She pulled the object from under her and discovered it was her cell phone, something she hadn't even realized she had forgotten. She glanced at the screen and found that she had several missed calls and a couple of messages. She scrolled through them to find that two were from her mom, one was from Brian, a few in a row were from Lex, and a few more were from Whitney. She was surprised when she saw Whitney's name on the list, and wondered what he could have possibly have wanted. She laid back in her bed as she dialed her voice mail to hear what he had to say.

"Hi Nicola, it's Whitney. So, you either don't have your cell with you or you're avoiding my calls, which, considering I almost ran you over, I don't blame you for. Anyway, you told me to call you when I figured out how to make it up to you, so that's what I'm doing. Call me back and I'll fill you in on the details. Don't make any plans for next Saturday, okay? Talk to you later."

Nicola raised an eyebrow, as she was intrigued as to what his plans could possibly be. Part of her was insulted that he assumed she didn't already have plans for the next weekend, however, since she didn't have plans, she couldn't really be mad at him for his presumption. She deleted the message and moved onto the next one.

"Hey, Nicola, it's Mom. Just calling you to make sure you're okay. Make sure not to make too much noise when you come in, Brian has an early morning tomorrow. Drive safe, sweetie. Love you."

Delete. Next message.

"Hey Cola. It's me," said a male voice Nicola instantly recognized as Brian's. "I wanted to call you apologize for Heidi again. If it makes you feel any better, I gave her hell for it during our drive to her place, although now she's pissed at me, but that's another story. Anyways, I'm sorry we weren't able to hang out more. Next time you come up to Metropolis, make sure to call me so we can do something, okay? Well, I better go. Call me back when you get a chance. Bye."

Skip to next message.

"You are obviously still angry with me since you're ignoring my calls and forcing me to plead with your answering machine, but just listen to what I have to say before you delete this message. I shouldn't have lectured you earlier, but I worry about you. I just don't like it when you get yourself into situations where you could get hurt. Anyway, once you're cooled off, call me and I'll make it up to you."

Nicola scoffed at the message from Lex before she deleted it. That was a call back she wasn't going to make for a few days. When another yawn escaped her mouth, she decided it was time for sleep. She plugged the cell phone into the charger and then quickly fell back into bed, letting sleep come to her.

As noon approached the next day, Nicola found herself in her throwing punches at the punching bag she had placed in the stables a few months after the move to Smallville. She had been letting her aggression for already an hour, and it didn't seem to be reaching its end any time soon. She gave the bag a series of quick punches, the finished with a hard kick at the bag's midsection.

"I hope none of that was directed towards me," a male voice quipped from behind her.

She slowly turned around to face the origin voice and found Smallville High's very own star quarterback was in her stables.

"Don't worry, the brunt of it belongs to someone else."

"Ah. Well, sorry to interrupt, but since you weren't answering my calls, I decided to drop by for face time."

"Not a problem, I was going to take a break soon anyway," Nicola replied as she took of her sparing gloves. "So, what can I do for you?"

"Well, you got my message, right?"

"The one about mysterious plans?"

"Yeah."

"Yes, I did. And let me tell you, I'm kind of insulted that you just assumed I didn't plans have for the weekend already."

"Do you?" asked Whitney.

"Do I what?"

"Have plans?"

"No," admitted Nicola, glowering.

"There you go."

"Okay, so what's this big plan of yours that requires a free Saturday?"

"Well, Saturday I have to go to Metropolis to visit my dad, so I was thinking that you could come with and then later we can watch the Metropolis Razorbacks go against the Sacramento Kings, on me of course"

Nicola's face lit up as she flashed Whitney a giant grin.

"Seriously, it's on you?"

"Yeah, but just to warn you, they are nosebleed seats."

"That's totally fine. I haven't seen a pro-basketball game in ages; any seats would be awesome, especially if the Kings are playing."

"I still can't believe they're your favorite team in the NBA."

"Hey, the Kings kick ass, especially Bibby and Jason Williams."

"Whatever, the Razorbacks could take their asses to town any day of the week."

"Oh, really? How about you put your money where your mouth is and put a wager on that?"

"You want to bet on the game?" asked Whitney, slightly incredulously.

"Yep. When the Kings win-"

"If," Whitney interrupted her.

"Fine, if the Kings win – and they will- you have to pay for our next outing. But, if by some fluke the Razorbacks happen to win, then I'll pay."

"You're on," Whitney said, stretching his hand out so the two could shake on it.

Nicola took the hand and gave it a firm shake.

"Well, the game is at 7 PM, but I have to be at the my dad's hospital by one, so I was thinking we could leave here at ten, which will get us there around then. And then, we could just hang out at downtown Metropolis until the game starts. What do you think?"

"Sounds like a plan. I think I can find ways to keep us entertained until the game starts."

"Great. Well, I need to go help my mom with the store, so better get going."

"All right. See you school tomorrow, then."

"Yeah, see ya."

As Whitney walked out of the stables and started to walk to his car, a blue truck had pulled up the drive and was coming towards him. By the time he reached his truck, the owner of the blue one had already come to a stop and was out of his car to talk to him.

"What are you doing here, Whitney?" Clark asked, his voice laced with suspicion.

"I don't really think that's any of your business, Kent," retorted Whitney.

"It was just a question, no need to get defensive."

"Whatever. If you're here to see Nicola, she's in the stables."

Before Clark could get another word in edgewise, Whitney was already climbing into his truck and quickly slammed the door shut tight. While Whitney was peeling out of the driveway, Clark began to make his way to the stables where Nicola had returned to beating the stuffing out of her punching bag.

"That wouldn't happen to be related to the fact that Whitney Fordman just was here, would it?" Clark asked as Nicola let out a set of quick, hard punches onto the punching bag.

Nicola slowly turned around to face Clark, and raised an eyebrow.

"Uh, no, why would you think that?"

"Because it was Whitney Fordman?"

"While Whitney can be aggravating, I was doing this way before he even got here."

"Oh. Well, why was he here?"

"Don't worry, Clark, it's nothing you have to be concerned about. So, what can I do for you?" Nicola asked, diverting the subject. "And why didn't you call me last night when you got back to Smallville?"

"Sorry. It's just that everything was so hectic last night that it completely slipped my mind."

"Really? And what exactly happened, pray tell, that would cause you to forget such a thing?" She answered her own question before Clark had a chance, "Let me guess; you called Lex to meet you and Tippet outside of town, but Rickman got to Lex before then, and when he arrived he was completely under Rickman's spell. Then Lex, under the control of Rickman, tried to kill you and Kyle- first by trying set the car on fire and then went after Kyle after you two escaped the flaming car. However, before Lex had a chance to kill Kyle, you came in to save the day by pushing Lex into set of shelves. How does that sound?"

Clark's eyes went wide and his mouth almost went slack jaw at the correctness in Nicola's guess, which caused Nicola to smirk in amusement.

"How did you know?"

"Lex told me."

"Lex?" repeated Clark, confused. "He didn't mention that this morning when I saw him. When did you talk to him?"

"Last night. After Lana, Chloe, and I came back from Metropolis I stopped by to see if he'd heard anything from you about the Tippet situation, since you hadn't called me yet," lied Nicola, cursing at herself forgetting it was a late night visit that couldn't be truthfully explained to Clark. "However, since Lex doesn't really remember what happened, and you were filling in the blanks, am I right to assume there is more to the story then what you told me?"

Clark's face turned into a frown as he began to remember one of the details he had left out in his retelling of events to Lex.

"When Lex was under Rickman's control, he had a gun, and then began to shoot at me with it."

Nicola was surprised at this revelation, and it was evident in her facial features. She could tell that Clark was troubled not only by the fact he was shot at, but that it was one of his best friends that had pulled the trigger.

"I'm sorry, Clark," Nicola replied gently, as she placed a hand on his arm. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, the bullets only left bruises."

"I meant emotionally, not physically, Man of Steel."

"Oh. Yeah, I guess."

"You guess?" repeated Nicola, skeptical of his answer.

"Well, it's kind of weird. I mean, I was shot at by my best friend."

"But that wasn't really your best friend, Clark. That was the shell of your best friend."

"I know, but that imagery kind of sticks, you know what I mean? And I can't help thinking that Rickman was playing off some kind of emotion in Lex that has ill feelings towards me, like what Kyle did to Chloe."

"Clark, I highly doubt Lex has any ill feelings towards you. Rickman was playing off the fact that you two were best friends, and he hates Lex. When Rickman did his power on people, he wasn't figuring out what emotions he could play off, but what would be most beneficial for him, and trust me, getting Lex to off not only Kyle but also Lex's own best friend was very beneficial in Rickman's mind."

"How could a person be so twisted? I just don't get it."

"Personally, I think it's the meteorite juice. Not only has it affected their physicality, but I think it also affects their psychosis."

"But Tippet wasn't evil like Rickman."

"Yeah, but think about it, Tippet basically dropped off the face of the planet rarely using the power the meteorites gave him, while Rickman was using the power like it was an extra body part. The more usage of the power, the worse it gets. However, that's just a theory."

Clark was quiet a moment while he mulled over Nicola's theory. Nicola suddenly remembered that she had told Chloe she would meet her at two so they could proof each other's stories for their journalism class.

"Hey, Clark, you've got the time, by chance."

"Uh, yeah," replied Clark, shaking out of his stupor so he could glance at the watch around his wrist. "It's one thirty-four."

"Crap, sorry to cut this short, but I've got to jet. I'll see you later though, okay?"

"Yeah, sure."

Before Clark could even blink, Nicola started to teleport out of the stables where they had stood, causing Clark to recoil in surprise. Even after all these months being friends with a fellow alien, he still wasn't used to seeing her do that. He let out a sigh in slight frustration to her sudden fleeing of their conversation before he turned back towards the stable's doors to go to his truck.

Once Nicola was corporeal again, she found herself back in her room. She rounded up a change of clothes and a towel before she hurried up the stairs to go to the one of the bathrooms in the house so she could shower. Once she was clean and ready to go, she grabbed her bag that had her school stuff in it, and then made her way to her car. Minutes later, she was in her car headed toward the Beanery where she would meet the one person that made her feel she had some sort of normalcy in her life.

End of Chapter/To be continued…

So what did you all think? Was the story better off dead or worth the resurrection? I hope it was the latter. Oh, and sorry if I made any of you cringe with my faux-Metropolis NBA team name- I couldn't think of a decent name, and that was the first (and only) thing that popped into my head. I'm also sorry the ending was kind of abrupt, but I couldn't think of a good ending point. If any of you have any suggestions that would be greatly appreciated. What's more, if you have suggestions for next chapter plotage, scenarios, character developments, etc., inform me of such. I really want to do something where Nicola's alien powers have some kind of a validity instead of being used for party tricks, but can't think of any way to do that without vastly changing the episode's plot. Maybe I'll just write something that doesn't revolve around an episode and instead write something where Nicola saves the day. I dunno, this may just be the caffeine talking. I digress and say any feedback would be lovely. Thanks again for taking what I'm sure was time-consuming minutes to read my story. If you ever want to harass me about anything, feel free to email me at I have some future plot ideas, but no body to inquire to about, so if you want to discuss, email me about that too.


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